Notices by Dr. Lucky Tran :verified: (luckytran@med-mastodon.com), page 5

“I thought that 30 years of good science could address these problems. I was wrong. The top environmental problems are selfishness, greed and apathy, and to deal with these we need a cultural and spiritual transformation. And we scientists don’t know how to do that.” —Gus Speth

We should always prioritize equity and justice over finding "middle ground," when middle ground continues to harm the people and communities who are most vulnerable.

Moderna says it will keep its #Covid vaccine free for all people in the U.S.—reversing course on its planned 400% price increase—one day after Bernie Sanders said he would force the CEO to testify.

Thank you, Bernie!!!

People who benefit from the status quo often attempt to silence the people being harmed or excluded. That's why some are horrifically punching down at immunocompromised and higher risk people right now. Don't let them stop you speaking truth to power.

#COVID

It's easy to give in to fatalism & think #COVID advocacy has achieved nothing, but that's wrong. Vaccine access, free tests & masks, funding #LongCOVID treatment, & even the reinstatement of mask mandates in some essential settings, is all the result of organizing & speaking up!

It's true that the government's #COVID response is far from adequate. And we could do with a lot more people and orgs helping us fight back. But we should be appreciative of the organizing that has happened, which has slowed policy from backsliding more and kept more people safe.

Thank you to everyone who has been organizing and continues to speak up for the need for COVID protections. You have kept so many safe, and made society more accessible to everyone. Don't give up, you are making a difference!

“In 2022, workers had the most sickness-related absences of the pandemic, and the highest number since record-keeping began in 1976.”

We need to stop buying into the denial that we are “back to normal.”

#COVID

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jan/29/covid-absence-workforce-health-long-covid

A climate scientist was just fired for staging a climate protest at a climate change conference. This is outrageous. Scientific institutions need to stop sabotaging themselves. Doing research alone is not enough to save the planet. Scientists must be activists!

#Climate #Activism

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/10/opinion/scientist-fired-climate-change-activism.html

It’s hypocritical for COVID minimizers to complain about lockdowns, and then refuse to wear masks.

By not wearing masks when there is high COVID spread, they are essentially consigning many higher risk people to being locked out of society indefinitely.

#COVID #COVID19

Universal mask wearing is not a lockdown. It’s the opposite: Mask mandates make society accessible to many more people, especially those at higher risk.

#COVID #COVID19

For those who keep saying they don't understand why we are so focused on masks: Mask mandates are the policy that would instantly make a huge difference to the lives of higher risk people. It would mean they could go on public transport, access medical care, & other basic needs.

#COVID #COVID19

Masks aren't perfect, no one single measure is, which is why we need to keep advocating for multiple measures including ventilation, next gen vaccines, and better treatments.

But we are in a surge now that is keeping our most vulnerable locked out of society. We can't keep people at home indefinitely, unable to access essential needs. Mask mandates will instantly open up society to millions more people, while we work on longer term solutions.

#COVID #COVID19

2022 isn’t the year that we emerged from the pandemic.

It’s the year we chose to normalize ignoring it and leaving the most vulnerable behind.

#COVID #COVID19 #PublicHealth