Thread by @grudging1, Ok I’m going to attempt a thread that brings together all the [...]

Ok I’m going to attempt a thread that brings together all the reporting on things Trump did prior to the virus which set us up for failure. 1/

Pandemic team on the NDC dissolved in 2018 https://apnews.com/ce014d94b64e98b7203b873e56f80e9a

Trump disbanded NSC pandemic unit that experts had praised

WASHINGTON (AP) — Public health and national security experts shake their heads when President Donald Trump says the coronavirus "came out of nowhere" and “blindsided the world.” They've...

https://apnews.com/ce014d94b64e98b7203b873e56f80e9a

2018: CDC to cut by 80 percent efforts to prevent global disease outbreak - The Washington Post https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2018/02/01/cdc-to-cut-by-80-percent-efforts-to-prevent-global-disease-outbreak/

CDC to cut by 80 percent efforts to prevent global disease outbreak

The Trump administration has not budgeted funds for global health security, so the CDC plans to scale back health security activities in 39 of 49 countries.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2018/02/01/cdc-to-cut-by-80-percent-efforts-to-prevent-global-disease-outbreak/

Nearly 700 vacancies at CDC because of Trump administration’s hiring freeze - The Washington Post https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2017/05/19/nearly-700-vacancies-at-cdc-because-of-trump-administration-hiring-freeze/

Nearly 700 vacancies at CDC because of Trump administration’s hiring freeze

Health and Human Services is one of several federal agencies to maintain the freeze on their own.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2017/05/19/nearly-700-vacancies-at-cdc-because-of-trump-administration-hiring-freeze/

Obama-era pandemic playbook 'was thrown onto a shelf' https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/obama-era-pandemic-playbook-was-thrown-shelf-n1170276

Obama-era pandemic playbook 'was thrown onto a shelf'

It's a common cliche: "there's no playbook" for a specific kind of challenge. But what about a dynamic in which there is a playbook, but it's not used?

https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/obama-era-pandemic-playbook-was-thrown-shelf-n1170276

Added zero supplies to national stockpile during term. Let existing stockpile expire. https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/desperate-for-medical-equipment-states-encounter-a-beleaguered-national-stockpile/2020/03/28/1f4f9a0a-6f82-11ea-aa80-c2470c6b2034_story.html

Desperate for medical equipment, states encounter a beleaguered national stockpile

Chronic underfunding, changing lines of command and confusion over allocations meet states turning to the national stockpile of emergency medical equipment.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/desperate-for-medical-equipment-states-encounter-a-beleaguered-national-stockpile/2020/03/28/1f4f9a0a-6f82-11ea-aa80-c2470c6b2034_story.html

Given full walkthrough exercise https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/488069-obama-officials-walked-trump-aides-through-global-pandemic-exercise-in-2017

Obama officials walked Trump aides through global pandemic exercise

The Obama administration walked incoming Trump administration officials through a hypothetical scenario in which a pandemic worse than the 1918 Spanish flu shut down cities like Seoul and London in

https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/488069-obama-officials-walked-trump-aides-through-global-pandemic-exercise-in-2017

Contagion exercise in 2019 revealed massive deficiencies https://int.nyt.com/data/documenthelper/6824-2019-10-key-findings-and-after/05bd797500ea55be0724/optimized/full.pdf#page=1

Trump administration ended coronavirus detection program - Los Angeles Times https://www.latimes.com/science/story/2020-04-02/coronavirus-trump-pandemic-program-viruses-detection

Trump administration ended pandemic early-warning program to detect coronaviruses

The program had worked with labs in Wuhan, China, and around the world to detect deadly viruses that could jump from animals to humans.

https://www.latimes.com/science/story/2020-04-02/coronavirus-trump-pandemic-program-viruses-detection

Axed expert on the ground in China https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-china-cdc-exclusiv-idUSKBN21910S

Exclusive: U.S. axed CDC expert job in China months before virus outbreak

Several months before the coronavirus pandemic began, the Trump administration eliminated a key American public health position in Beijing intended to help detect disease outbreaks in China, Reuters...

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-china-cdc-exclusiv-idUSKBN21910S

Latest Threads Unrolled: