Governor Noem: Covid Cases down 59% from a month ago

@SoDakCampaigns

From Twitter, Governor Kristi Noem is passing on good news:

29 thoughts on “Governor Noem: Covid Cases down 59% from a month ago”

  1. Oh, now she notices.

    I must have missed it when Kristi Noem highlighted the RISE in cases week after week. And deaths.

    Shameless.

  2. What is most significant is that South Dakota’s “spike” was flatter than most state’s and large cities where their hospitals got overrun.

    Because our spike will be spread over 4 months, our strategy actually “flattened the curve” which achieved the goal- “not over-run the capacity of the hospitals.”

    Again, Governor Noem proves South Dakotans can do the right thing with good leadership dedicated to good science.

    And, again, proves the “experts” are afraid to make the hard recommendations and only want to cover their butts. I’m now starting to figure out why there is never any political will to give doctor’s malpractice reform.

    1. ” Flattened the curve”? I don’t think so.

      See above chart for April through August. That was flattening the curve.

      Then, all of the large events she promoted occurred in August and September. Sturgis Rally, State Fair and county fairs etc. She mocked distancing and didn’t encourage masks. That enormous spike in September… that is Kristi’s doing, and it was deadly.

      We were the worst in the nation this fall and you will never be able to put a shine on that buffalo chip.

      1. elk, we were never the worst in the nation; the mortality rate has consistently been one of the lowest. Our hospitalization rate was lower than many other states’ mortality rates. For months we stayed at about a 1% mortality rate and the hospitalization rate was running under 6%
        Since the start our mortality rate has been 1.5% and the hospitalization rate is 6.2%. Currently 412 of the 10,987 active cases are hospitalized. This is impressive as so many patients are reportedly requiring hospitalization for weeks if not months.

        1. This month.

          Governors should be compared to the performance of other governors this month, not last March when states did not know how to detect or treat the virus. I know it is convenient for Noem to compare apples to oranges, but it isn’t honest.

          Also, Kristi has more to do with total infection numbers than mortality rate. She can drive up infections and, as a result, total deaths with her policies. But the mortality “rate” is largely a measure of the hospitals ability to treat a patient.

          Once hospitals get closer to capacity, the mortality rate obviously rises. Kristi Noem had us close to maximum capacity, especially in regards to staffing.

          With distribution of the vaccine underway, most of these illnesses and deaths COULD HAVE BEEN PREVENTED had we resisted the spread a little longer. Governor Noem did the opposite of what was necessary to slow the spread of this virus.

          1. Noem will cherry-pick numbers that obscure just how bad her performance has been. Just remember one thing… the vaccine is here… and she would have only needed to keep us safe for a few more weeks.

            1. It’s bizarre to think Gov. Noem or any politician can control a virus.

              As for hospitals, yes, their short on staff. That’s been the case the past 20 years. And, yes, they’re near capacity at times. Again, that happens every fall during flu season. As it is, the average hospital beds used for this period the previous three years hovers around 70 percent. And this year, the figure this fall has averaged a whopping …. wait for it …. 70 percent. While West River is a little tight on space at 25 percent available beds, East River still has plenty of capacity to make overall availability of beds statewide at 39 percent.

  3. With all of this talk about the China flu deaths, it is interesting that deaths in the US are about the same as last year and perhaps will be a little lower. We also can note that in spite of the draconian measures implemented by some of these dictatorial governors, numbers have been increasing. Contrary to the resident Karen’s assertions, I submit had Governor Noem implemented the kinds of fixes Elk wants, there would be little if any difference in the numbers. BTW, you cannot go into a Walmart, Menards, Target or most other store without a mask, yet the numbers went up anyway.

    1. If Kristi Noem wants credit for the drop in the last few weeks, she must also take responsibility for the record spike before that.

      She didn’t just preside over the increase, she encouraged it. She supported large, maskless gatherings during a pandemic. What did you think would happen?

      1. Actually, I am not so sure she is taking credit for the drop. She is taking credit for allowing the people of South Dakota to decide what is right for themselves. As for going maskless, we have already seen that the draconian measures do not do what they are advertised to do. We have also found that overall deaths are about the same as they were a year ago. Go ahead and keep spewing misinformation.

  4. What caused this recent drop in cases? That is what I’d like to know.

    Was it due to increased mask use or mandates in some areas? Was it fear of the devastating rise in case numbers?

    Or… could it be some form of herd immunity? Yes, I said it. I wonder if the population of those who do not distance and wear masks has reached some saturation point. Nobody has had time to study this issue yet but the vast majority of the folks that I know, who refused to wear masks, have already been infected.

    1. Elk…

      Covid-19 will run its course on its own schedule, and Gov. Noem is making that point. And while its a pleasant delusion that humans can control a virus, it’s still a delusion, regardless of its pleasantness.

      1. Cliff writes, “its a pleasant delusion that humans can control a virus, it’s still a delusion”

        Delusion? You might want to inform the vaccine manufacturers of your brilliant conclusion.

        1. Elk…

          Vaccines can boost immunity temporarily. That’s not control, just stop-gap management. The virus still will do what it wants, including mutating, which renders the vaccine ineffective.

          And yes, I am brilliant. Thank you for recognizing that.

  5. Let’s have a debate!

    In this corner… we have Gov. Kristi Noem. And, over here, we have Dr. Anthony Fauci.

    To see his face when she spews her nonsense. I’d pay to watch that train wreck.

    1. Fauci’s an ideological, pandering, attention-seeking tool. He had one job — prepare the nation for a certain pandemic — and he had years to prepare, and he failed. I read him for the autocrat he is the first time he opened his mouth repeating the Chinese talking points about the pandemic last winter.

      Noem gives us the facts and respects you and me enough to let us weigh the risks and make our own choices. She also considers the science without compromising liberty.

      Conclusion: She’d wipe the floor with him.

        1. It’s not a belief, it’s simply true.

          Her news conferences and youtube posts are always informative. And the state health department’s Covid-19 dashboard has all the data anyone needs to know what’s what. Gov. Noem isn’t a media phony like her counterparts in Minnesota and New York and California and Michigan.

            1. Almost all those deaths are frail people over 80, which viruses harvest every year. I’m curious what you would do differently than the long-term care staff and the state to add even one day more of life for these 39 people. Because no one else cares. Just you.

              1. That is truly one of the saddest comments that I have ever read on Dakota War College.

                Or dumbest. Just trying to figure out which.

    2. Go ahead and have a debate. Dr. Fauci has been wrong just about every time. First he said masks don’t do anything. The was right. Then he changed his mind. Then he said we should close schools even though children do not spread the virus much and if they contract it, they tend to get over it. Then he said we MIGHT have a vaccine by July of next year. President Trump said we could have it by election time and we would have had Phizer not chosen to delay it. Trump said by the end of the year.

      1. You keep trying to discredit Fauci because of initial virus estimates and mask wearing recommendations. Of course he had to adjust those based on… wait for it… science and data. That’s what scientists do. That is what medical experts do when confronted with a new virus.

        Instead, you believed your favorite politicians while they displayed their ignorance all year long. You believed them when they said that Covid was going away by Easter.

        They just didn’t say which Easter. Right, duggersd?

        1. Elk,

          What you forget is Herr Faucci ignored the science and data coming out of Europe. If he had gone with what he had, he’d never have had to adjust. Of course he wouldn’t have been able to take over our lives either.

      2. Trump tweet on March 9th,

        “So last year 37,000 Americans died from the common Flu. It averages between 27,000 and 70,000 per year. Nothing is shut down, life & the economy go on. At this moment there are 546 confirmed cases of CoronaVirus, with 22 deaths. Think about that!”

        He played it down, despite knowing better. Some of you believed him.

  6. Elk,

    It is unrealistic to have ever thought we were going to avoid our spike prior to a vaccine. Not even Faucci said it was avoidable.

    Our spike was spread over multiple months which is why we never overwhelmed our hospitals and as you correctly referenced we are now likely experiencing some benefits from limited herd immunity.

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