It was as if a couple of guys in their 70s were at the dinner table, ready to bang heads over just about anything. And of course, it was usually Uncle Don who interrupted, throwing a fork of lies into the spaghetti and meatballs, slobbering himself. His mouth was full of venom. Nowhere to turn, nowhere to hide. Said Uncle Joe, “C’mon Man!”

The debate between President Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden was that crazy dinner table. Nixon-Kennedy, geez, they were nice. Remember when it appeared that Nixon was sweating and it cost him votes. Ah, a simpler time. I asked someone if she watched the debate, and she read a bit about it as it was going on, and just went to bed. She didn’t want to interrupt her sleep. They were shouting, and I was listening on the car radio. Later I forced myself to take glimpses of it on my computer screen. Numbers kept jumping up at me despite the turmoil and vitriol, those health-related figures. We’ve got only so many days before we either oust Trump or elect Biden.

The name of this blog is Health Data Buzz and as one of my kids tells me, “Dad, too often it’s not about the numbers.” He is right.

The numbers:

One million.

One million people have died around the world from COVID-19. Tragic, terrible, awful. Sorry, that was a few days ago. It’s now at 1,010,147. according to the Johns Hopkins Data Center. There are 206,494 deaths in the U.S.

There are a mind-boggling 33,785,178 covid cases around the world. It’s been well documented how sluggish and stutter-stepped our response has been. Finally, there is a consensus: wear a mask. Wear a mask. That’s not the only final answer, but its helpful. Our president and some of his — yes, even health officials — don’t wear masks all the time.

Pre-existing conditions

Many people in this country have pre-existing health conditions. They might have cardiovascular problems, diabetes, sleep apnea, any of the long-term or chronic conditions. Medicine and pills are their steady companions as they lean on advice from their doctors. And then they worry as the medical bills arrive. To get better, they are told to reduce stress, breathe deeply — then the medical bills pile up.

Biden says about 100 million people have pre-existing health conditions — and these people could lose their health insurance should the Affordable Care Act be eliminated. Trump says that isn’t the case. The numbers appear to be in the middle, from 53.8 million to 102 million, according to NBC News. citing different studies. The thing is, if the Affordable Care Act is wiped out — and nothing put in its place – millions will lose health coverage, and now at the time of COVID-19, that’s pretty devastating. Trump says he would protect pre-existing coverage, but supports a lawsuit trying to overcome the Affordable Care Act.

COVID-19 has been devastating to Black Americans. Biden cited a figure that 1 in 1,000 African-Americans have been killed because of the coronavirus. Vox confirmed the numbers, referring to a report from the APM Research Lab.

Covid testing, for one thing, has been not equal, which is inexcusable, and that is costing too many lives. And there’s Trump. Having a real chance to condemn white supremacy. He opened his mouth. He could have done it. He didn’t.

For years, the Affordable Care Act was simply called Obamacare because it was enacted under the Obama administration.

I wonder if the name is truly and deeply one of the main reasons why Trump detests the law so much. Just a thought.

$750

And, another nagging number, just rolling around my brain. $750.

If I was another Joe — Biden, that is — I would stamp that $750 all over the place as a campaign slogan. Don’t Trump supporters care about that $750?

Of course, $750 represents the amount of taxes that President Trump paid the year he was elected president. For most of the last two decades he’s paid zero taxes, according to The New York Times.

Yes, the Art of the Tax Avoidance.

There are other kinds of avoidances, too, even deadlier.

In Bob Woodward’s book “Rage,” the famed journalist discloses contents of 18 recorded interviews with Trump.

Trump, in his own words, said that he knew about how bad the pandemic was, but downplayed it — not revealing it until it was too late, according to Woodward’s book.

It’s an outrage. – Joe Cantlupe, Health Data Buzz