The daily dose of Corona statistics has created a pervasive
climate of fear of infection in the United States. As an unanticipated consequence, people are
cancelling necessary medical appointments and avoiding going to emergency
rooms. Scott Atlas and colleagues have calculated
the indirect medical costs of corona-fear for the United States, including mental
health costs ,to be on par (or worse) with the direct costs of Coronavirus.
Germany, rated as
having Europe’s best anti-Coronavirus recovery program, is beginning to report
similar indirect medical costs: A study by
NDR finds that up to 30 % of oncological appointments, 50% of cardiology, and
80% of dental appointments are being cancelled. Mental health hotlines are
being flooded with calls
associated with Coronavirus, including many from youths. Germany is fortunate
in that its suicide rate has not
risen during Corona.
The sex trade is also a victim of Corona. Legal in
Germany, prostitution has been temporarily banned
as a consequence of the virus. The labor union that represents sex workers is
lobbying for a resumption, arguing that brothels have always been strictly
regulated for hygiene. Sex workers, they claim, can wear masks and rooms can be
aired after each encounter.
