Read on Twitter
Many of you know I keep close eyes on PA's publicly-available info about the dates COVID-19 deaths actually occurred, vs. the dates they are reported. I tweet this data daily. A note about today's update:
For nearly a month, I have studied these numbers. Every day, I have tweeted what I've discovered. I have done this because I believe it is important for the public to understand just how long death reports are lagging.
Yesterday, the endpoint I've been using to view the data was cut off, moved behind a login page. I asked @PAHealthDept about it. Maybe a blip? The dept publishes these numbers daily on their dashboard. They are not secret. They are not hidden. They are simply not accessible.
First, I was told they'd look into it & that "anything on our website shouldn't be behind a login." Roger. Tech is hard. I get it. Again, these are numbers the department is publishing daily. Probably a simple mistake?
Next thing I know, I'm told maybe I tried to access the page while it was being updated. Can I try again? OK, but no, that's not the issue. The issue is my access was cut.
Next, I'm told this: "I'm not sure how you had access to that, but there is no access to the back end of the dashboard. So, moving forward, I do not think you will have access."
I respond: "I am able to hover over the graph each day, to see the individual breakdowns. All the numbers are there. But I am no longer able to access a basic table of the numbers, the exact same ones being used to populate that public-facing graph. Is that correct?"
"That is correct," I am told.
It's been a hassle to build a workaround, but these are public-facing numbers and the public has a right to be able to actually read them. They're hard to get at. I can help. Anyway, here's today's update: https://twitter.com/sarambsimon/status/1283791610535436291?s=20
