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Editorial
Despite lower vaccination rate, Nebraska safer than many other states
Friday, October 15, 2021
Nebraskans, especially in this part of the state, are naturally “socially distanced,” which may one of the most important factors when it comes to safety during the pandemic.
The number-crunchers at WalletHub list the cornhusker state as the 21st-safest place to live when it comes to COVID-19. Connecticut ranks No. 1 as the safest, using the website’s criteria, and Idaho is 51st, not all the data was available for that state.
Although Nebraska ranks 30th in vaccination rate, we have a low death rate, 8th best in the nation.
To rank states’ “safety,” WalletHub used a 100-point scale, with 25 points for vaccination rate, 12.5 points for positive testing rate, 12.5 for hospitalization rate, 37.5 for deaths and 12.5 for transmission rate.
Read the complete study here: https://bit.ly/2YXWGhh
At 21st, Nebraska ranked “safer” than all of its neighbors except for Missouri, which came in at 18th.
Unfortunately, there’s a connection between how you or your state votes and your chance of being infected or killed by the coronavirus.
Blue states with an average rank of 17.35, ranked twice as safe using WalletHub criteria as red states, at 35. Others included Kansas at 25, Colorado at 24, Iowa 35, South Dakota 27 and Wyoming 49th.
For the various categories, Hawaii had the highest vaccination rate and West Virginia the lowest.
Massachusetts had the lowest positive testing rate, and South Dakota the highest.
Rhode Island had the fewest people hospitalized for COVID-19, while Montana had the most.
Alabama had the lowest death rate, while Idaho and West Virginia were tied with the most.
Georgia was the best when to comes to the average number of people to whom an infected person will transmit COVID-19, and Idaho and Michigan are tied at worst.
Unfortunately, making the pandemic a political issue is costing lives, whether through the spread of misinformation or draconian measures that force employees to choose between their conscience and their livelihood.
How much better to appeal to true patriotism and responsible concern for our fellow citizens, the attitude that brought our country through World War II, the Depression and other times of national crisis.
Perhaps there’s still time.