4 ms·
I nominate CDC's bioerror: allowing a test reagent to become contaminated and then distributing that contaminated reagent as part of its first batch COVID-19 te
by bewaretheirs 6y ago
I nominate CDC's bioerror: allowing a test reagent to become contaminated and then distributing that contaminated reagent as part of its first batch COVID-19 test kits[1].
My recollection is that this delayed widespread availability of COVID-19 testing in the US for something like a month during the crucial early stages of the pandemic; that may well cause a million excess casualties from the pandemic -- especially if you count economic casualties (lost jobs). The FDA's regulartory approach (being slow to license tests and quick to crack down on unauthorized testing) contributed to this bioerror.
[1] https://www.webmd.com/lung/news/20200623/early-cdc-covid-19-test-kits-likely-contaminated https://www.webmd.com/lung/news/20200623/early-cdc-covid-19-...
- asdfasgasdgasdg 6y agoEven if that were a satisfactory incident under the terms of the bet, there would not have been sufficient casualties due to that error alone.
- imtringued 6y agoThat's a good point. The arguments based around complacency can't count because each countries' response is different. There is no global preparation against the virus so all the additional deaths that can be attributed to local lockdowns not being sufficient cannot be attributed to a global cause. Each of them would be attributed to the individual countries' politicians. 10000 politicians each causing 100 deaths is not the same as an incompetent or malicious researcher leaking the virus on his own.