How things have changed in a matter of weeks. It used to be if you were walking down a sidewalk and saw a friend, you would get a hug and talk for a minute. Now, friends cross the street to avoid coming within the six-foot recommended social distancing.
But social distancing to stem the spread of the coronavirus, combined with recommendations to stay at home if you are in high risk groups, has been tough for many people. Even some in the high risk groups continue to go out frequently and justify it by saying that the coronavirus is not yet in Eureka Springs. While there have been no confirmed cases, testing was slow to start and as of March 30, only 19 people had been tested in Carroll County.
“I think it is a false assumption to consider that the virus hasn’t made it here,” retired Greenpeace scientist Pat Costner said. “I would be astounded if it had not already been circulating in our county for some time. What we have is a lack of testing combined with the fact that for eighty percent of the people, the illness is mild.”
Costner recommends following recommendations for social distancing and staying at home as much as possible. When you go out, be conscious of your proximity to other people.
“Wear gloves, wear a mask and as soon as you get home, wash your hands anyway,” she said. “Just be as careful as you can and be conscious that contagion is in the air.
“Get out and walk outside, look around you, see what is out here, cultivate an attitude of gratitude,” she said. “I’m on the phone a lot now with family and friends, and I hear so many say, ‘What a relief it is to be still, to not being on the go all the time. Some of the grandkids are enjoying being at home and not having to go every day.”
But while some find joy and relief in the circumstance, Costner has great empathy for the enormous anxiety in people who have lost their incomes. That is particularly true for parents with children at home.
“I think this whole experience is giving us insight into the flaws in our economic and political structures,” Costner said. “The fact that a majority of the population of the U.S. lives paycheck-to-paycheck is frightening. That’s an enormous flaw in our economic system.”
Congress has approved an economic stimulus package that will provide $1,200 per individual and $500 per child. Costner said the economic stimulus will make everyone happy for a day or two, but that amount of money is not even a good band aid.
“How long will it feed and house the family?” she asks. “For most people, that might not even cover two weeks of their expenses. In other countries, some companies are giving their employees as much as eight quarters of their regular salary. If help is going to be real, it has to be continual help until all this is over.”
Health officials have said that conspiracy theories around the origin of the virus and the promotion of unproven treatments have made it harder to protect the public.
“I think everyone wants an easy end or an easy solution,” Costner said. “It’s difficult for many people to wrap their minds around the fact we are connected to each other. We are all connected to the natural environment. What happens in one place has repercussions everywhere else.”
One countervailing theory that Costner thinks merits consideration is speculation the coronavirus has been circulating among humans for some period of time and what we are seeing is a result of it having mutated in a way that enables it to have stronger effects on humans. Some Americans have reported getting a COVID-like illness before it ever supposedly originated in Wuhan, China, in late December 2019.
The disease could be seen as a manifestation of a deeper-rooted problem.
“We have thrown the ecosystem out of balance, which affects our ability to thrive,” she said. “That is kind of where we are.”
It would also be very helpful if there was an antibody test so it would be known who the 80 percent are who have gotten COVID-19 but had only minor illnesses. Those people could help others in need and restart the economy. But Costner, a chemist, said an antibody test needs an entire infrastructure that doesn’t currently exist.
“Chemicals have to be available for constituting the test, they have to have the instrumentation, you need people trained to use instruments and then all of the above must be distributed all around the country,” Costner said.
Costner thinks nearly everyone will get COVID-19 until a vaccine is developed.
“What we don’t want is all of us getting it at once and overloading the medical system so that physicians are forced to decide who to save and who to let go,” Costner said. “I think Gov. Andrew Cuomo has said New York City is going to be there in a couple of days.”