Public health measures are not the cause of morbidity and mortality, the pandemic is

An article shared widely claims that COVID-19-related lockdowns are responsible for more deaths in Canada than the virus itself. The article references a report from Statistics Canada, which reviews indirect consequences of the pandemic, such as overdose deaths. Serious issues such as delayed medical procedures, increased substance use, increases in number and severity of mental health conditions, delaying of critical social and educational milestones in children, and more, are occurring. However, these issues represent part of the devastating toll of a pandemic, in addition to the morbidity and mortality due to COVID-19 directly. The interconnected societal impact caused by pandemics is why global health and public health emergency experts have consistently argued for improved pandemic preparedness and response. When a pandemic hits, mask wearing, testing, contact tracing, quarantines and lockdowns, and when possible mass immunization, are the most effective means of protecting the most people. Public health pandemic protocols are associated with negative outcomes, but they are not themselves the cause, the pandemic is. Public health measures are employed out of necessity, until the immediate threat of large-scale death has passed, not arbitrarily.

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