As the United States faces the coronavirus pandemic, social media is full of people who say that in spite of having a number of terrifying symptoms, they haven’t been able to get a test. Who has been able to get tested, allegedly without any symptoms? GOP politicians, celebrities, and athletes. As police officials stressed in a recorded phone call with Trump administration officials, reviewed by ABC News, these tests need to go to first responders, not professional athletes.
Chief John Carli, of Vacaville in northern California, didn’t splice words during the Friday call, reportedly saying: “If we’re quarantining [our] people for 14 days … we’re going to lose our first responders. And we have to, at a national level, get the support down to the local level. Stop testing NBA players, and start testing our first responders.”
Police Chief Bill Brooks, of Norwood, Massachusetts, reportedly expressed understandable concern on the call with officials from the White House and Homeland Security, which was set up by the International Association of Chiefs of Police. He noted, “I need the police department to be operational and healthy 60 days from now.”
Basically: People becoming ill is obviously worrisome on an individual level, but also a structural one. If the virus spreads through a whole department, police forces may be facing the same sort of shortage health care workers are worried about. A number of officers are already self-quarantining out of precaution; a smart move, but when there are only so many people in a department, it raises reasonable concerns for the future.
Why are police, among other first responders like EMTs or firefighters, at such a risk? With so few people being approved for testing, we simply don’t know who has the coronavirus and who doesn’t. There’s also the point that some people are asymptomatic—basically, people may be carrying the virus and appear perfectly healthy.
If the Trump administration won’t test everyone, an alternative (for now) is to at least test people who can’t opt out of interacting with countless strangers every single day. Police may interact with people during everything from a simple traffic violation to an emergency call at someone’s home, all the while not knowing who has been exposed, and from there, if they themselves are carriers who are spreading it as well. It’s a seriously concerning cycle.
Though this call was centered around traditional first responders, it’s worth noting that hourly employees, like cashiers at supermarkets and pharmacies, are essentially emergency responders too. While a growing number of states and cities put bans on nonessential businesses, these businesses stay open—and the range of protections offered, whether it’s paid sick leave or additional safety measures, leave a lot of low-wage workers worried about their health.
One bright change is that both Minnesota and Vermont have reclassified supermarket workers as essential employees. Hopefully, this move will inspire other states to follow suit as the pandemic rages on.
If you’re wondering why NBA athletes managed to get tested, according to NBA spokesperson Mike Bass, the concern came down to how much they travel and how many people they interact with. "Public health authorities and team doctors have been concerned,” Bass said, as reported by CNN, “that, given NBA players' direct contact with each other and close interactions with the general public, in addition to their frequent travel, they could accelerate the spread of the virus.”
A reasonable enough explanation for their own players, but that doesn’t excuse the general lack of tests that most of the population is facing. The solution is getting a test to absolutely everyone who needs one, including people who may be asymptomatic but have reasonable risks due to exposure. In the face of supply issues, getting those tests to our first responders—including the low-wage workers who deal with the public day in and day out—is a top priority. The best time to act on this is likely gone, but that doesn’t mean another day should be wasted.
