OPINION: We should create a 9/11 style COVID commission

A 9/11 Commission was obvious when created in November 2002. To date, COVID-19 has killed 200 times more people than 9/11 across the U.S., and continues to threaten lives domestically and around the globe.

Any event that results in: 

• The deaths of more than 600,000 Americans, deserves a 9/11 style commission.
• A 40% greater likelihood of death depending on race, deserves a 9/11 style commission.
• A failure to effectively protect and care for seniors, and results in over 184,000 nursing home deaths, deserves a 9/11 style commission.
• Months of waiving key protections of the Americans with Disabilities Act, on its 30th anniversary, effectively stripping protections designed to safeguard the civil rights and independence of people with access and functional needs and other disabilities, deserves a 9/11 commission.
• The deaths of over 3,600 American healthcare workers, largely due to insufficient access to effective personal protective equipment (PPE), deserves a 9/11 style commission.
• One in eight ICUs across the country, reaching maximum capacity- simultaneously, deserves a 9/11 style commission.
• Trillions of dollars of economic damage and long-term, elevated unemployment rates, necessitating multiple, multi-trillion dollar stimulus packages, deserves a 9/11 style commission.
• Nationwide school closures, in some cases for over one year, resulting in 55.1 million children out of the classroom, deserves a 9/11 style commission.
• A once in a generation adverse impact on children's mental health, resulting in a 31 percent increase in mental health-related emergency room visits for youth aged 12 to 17 during 2020 as compared to 2019, deserves a 9/11 style commission.

And any event where: The viral spread of misinformation outpaced government efforts to save lives and inform the public, resulting in thousands of deaths, deserves a 9/11 style commission. ...

Ben Smilowitz is founder and executive director of Disaster Accountability Project and SmartResponse.org, a nonprofit started after Hurricane Katrina.