Mr. President, You Forgot One Test

President Biden wants 80 million more people to get COVID-19 shots. He is blaming those people who have, for whatever reason, decided not to get the COVID-19 shots, for people getting sick and dying. What he is not telling us is that the number of children under the age of 17 is almost 73 million. Those 12 years and under is estimated to be 60 million by Statista (1). How do underage children fit into the President's 80 million goal?

The President said that his mandate requiring shots or testing does not apply to companies with less that 100 employees. Lets take a look at small businesses in America.

There are almost 31 million small businesses.
SBA reports that firms with less than 20 employees make up 89% of all businesses in America.
98.2% of small businesses employ fewer than 100 people.
99.9% of all US businesses are small businesses and they employ 60.6 million people or 47% of the total American workforce.

Under the President's mandate, children under 12 and small business workers are not included and the pool shrinks by as much as 120 million people.

The businesses that employ over 100 people are under pressure to have their employees get the shot or be tested weekly to see if they have the virus. Failure to get tested or have the shot can be a $14,000 fine. What we don't know is if the $14,000 fine is a one-time fine or must be paid every time someone fails to get the test or the shot.

What will companies do? Do they have other options? I would expect to see changes in the number of employees. Some companies will lay off people to get below 100 and some will reduce the number of hours some employees work so some employees will not be considered full-time employees. There is a different approach for the company and the employer to comply. If an employee gets sick and has to go to the hospital, the employer will want to know if the employee has COVID-19. If they have the virus, they will want them tested to see if they have COVID-19 antibodies in their system. The Gold Standard of that test is the SARS-CoV-2 Antibody, IgG, Spike. This test will tell if they have immunity to the COVID-19 virus. If they take the test and the results show they have COVID-19 antibodies, they don't need the shot.

If the test comes back and says they have no COVID-19 antibodies, then they need the shot. The amazing thing is that under most insurance plans the cost of the test is $0. One word of caution, we already know that about 6% of people who get the shots get reinfected and as the Delta and other variants come along the current shots may not provide protection and they may need the test each time a new variant arrives.  If you are an employer of more than 100 people you might want to tell your employees about the test to see if they have COVID antibodies. It is probably a good idea for companies of less than 100 employees to have all their employees get tested for antibodies.  It also might be a good idea for businesses, big or small, to have potential employees tested before they are hired.  Go to youtube.com and put in this link to watch a video on the test (2). I have assembled below from a few testing websites questions and answers about the COVID antibodies test. If I get tested, what will the results tell me?

An antibody test will show whether or not you have developed antibodies to COVID-19 after exposure or vaccination. This test cannot tell you if you have an active infection. If you suspect you have COVID-19, follow up with your healthcare provider about getting a PCR test. This test should not be used to determine the level of immunity you have. You should contact your healthcare provider for additional guidance on how to interpret your test results. Regardless of your test results, it is important to continue to follow public health recommendations, such as vaccination, physical distancing, use of masks and face coverings, hand hygiene, and isolation, and quarantine.

Your results can be provided to you through a secure online portal to view or print. Your results will be reported to public health authorities where required by law.

Can I use a semi-quantitative COVID-19 antibody test to determine my level of immunity?

A semi-quantitative antibody test can help identify individuals who have developed an immune response after exposure to COVID-19 or vaccination. However, it should not be used to determine the level of immunity you have. However, evidence is still being collected to determine if antibodies provide protective immunity against SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) specifically. Follow up with your healthcare provider for additional guidance on how to interpret your test results.

Can I use a semi-quantitative COVID-19 antibody test to track my antibody levels over time?

This test provides a numerical value that helps determine whether or not you have antibodies at the time of testing. However, it is still unknown whether or not it is useful to track antibody levels over time. Follow up with your healthcare provider for additional guidance on how to interpret your test results.

NOTES:

1. https://www.statista.com/statistics/457786/number-of-children-in-the-us-by-age/