Congressman Steve Cohen: We must lean on science to find vaccine for COVID-19 | Opinion

• Congressman Cohen represents Tennessee’s 9th Congressional District and is a member of the Science, Space and Technology Committee.

As some governors and other elected officials begin to contemplate lifting stay-at-home orders and other states open, it reminds me how important it is to listen to scientific experts to make sure that we reduce the loss of life.  

Unfortunately, as we know especially well in Memphis, the spread of COVID-19 and fatality rates are also impacted by socioeconomic and structural factors. These are further compounded by vulnerabilities in our health system. 

The Surgo Foundation has developed the COVID-19 Community Vulnerability Index which shows the communities that might be most adversely affected by this pandemic and rates Shelby County residents as a location of high COVID-19 vulnerability. Our neighbors in Arkansas and Mississippi, who frequently come to Memphis for health care, rank even higher.  

We know that in countries that have lifted their stay-at-home orders too soon, there have been spikes in cases and these countries have had to reinstate their quarantines.    

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In our rush to find a cure, I'm concerned we will look to pseudoscience that sounds good rather than scientific peer-reviewed medical evidence.

President Trump has, unfortunately, pushed chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine as a potential “game changer” despite sound scientific evidence to the contrary.

In fact, a preliminary study found that the drug was ineffective in treating the virus and that there were more deaths among those given hydroxychloroquine compared to those given standard care.

The president has also proposed inserting UV rays and injecting disinfectants into patients with coronavirus. Bleach, Lysol and other disinfectants like it are toxic when ingested, inhaled or injected into the body.  Despite the president walking back his proposal calls to poison control centers increased.

There are many career scientists who have tried to prevent the spread of pseudoscience and it appears scientist Dr. Rick Bright, former deputy assistant secretary of Health and Human Services for preparedness and response and director of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, has been punished for it. When we finally have a cure, it will be found through clinical trials and robust research - not guesses made by the president.    

The CARES Act invested more than $3 billion to the development of treatments and a vaccine available to all.  I am pleased that the Interim Emergency Coronavirus Relief Package requires the administration to develop a Federal COVID-19 Strategic Testing Plan and includes another $4 billion for our federal research enterprises for testing. 

As we develop CARES 2.0, I will continue to push for more investment through our federal research enterprise to find a cure and effective treatments.  

Unfortunately, there is a lot we don’t know about COVID-19 or when we will have an effective vaccine or a cure.  What we do know is that scientists around the world are working day and night to find a vaccine or a cure and learn more about this virus. 

The best thing that we can do is listen to them. 

Congressman Cohen represents Tennessee’s 9th Congressional District and is a member of the Science, Space and Technology Committee.