Coronavirus is the greatest global science policy failure in a generation | Richard Horton
The warnings of doctors and scientists were ignored, with fatal results
" Richard Horton is a doctor and edits the Lancet
" See all our coronavirus coverage
We knew this was coming. In her 1994 warning to the world, The Coming Plague, Laurie Garrett concluded: "While the human race battles itself, fighting over ever more crowded turf and scarcer resources, the advantage moves to the microbes' court. They are our predators and they will be victorious if we, Homo sapiens, do not learn how to live in a rational global village that affords the microbes few opportunities."
If you think her language hyperbolic, consider the more sober analysis from the US Institute of Medicine in 2004. It evaluated the lessons of the 2003 Sars outbreak, quoting Goethe: "Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do." It concluded that "the rapid containment of Sars is a success in public health, but also a warning " If Sars reoccurs " health systems worldwide will be put under extreme pressure " Continued vigilance is vital."
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