Letter: Politicizing COVID responses instead of doing right thing

By Letter to the Editor on August 20, 2021.

Dear editor,

As of Aug. 19, we have 526 active COVID-19 cases in Medicine Hat and district.

After Banff, Cypress County and Medicine Hat now have the highest number of active cases per 100,000 population in all of Alberta (743.5 and 735.5).

At last report we have 15 people in hospital. These numbers are apparently the highest recorded in Medicine Hat during the pandemic, to date.

The recent awareness campaign, involving the city and AHS, at least as I viewed it online, was extremely disappointing in view of the extreme seriousness of our local situation.

In addition to promoting vaccinations, surely avoiding indoor gatherings altogether, practising physical distancing and, above all, wearing masks in our extremely high-risk exposure areas, should have not only been encouraged but stressed!

My personal concern is that mask wearing locally may be becoming a political party support decision and not a common-sense health issue decision, similar to some of our southern U.S. neighbour’s very questionable decisions, which in my view, are entirely political, and hazardous.

Gordon Briosi

Medicine Hat

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