On October 1, 2020 the United States received news via Twitter that President Trump and his wife tested positive for COVID-19. The next day the internet was swarming with media articles and live updates on the status of Trump’s illness. On the evening of Friday October 2, 2020, Trump was airlifted by helicopter to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, where he began to receive extensive medical care and treatments. He was given dexamethasone, a steroid that calms the immune system. Trump’s symptoms were reported as mild and according to an article by BBC News it is not a drug normally given to people with mild symptoms. He received monoclonal antibody therapy which mimics our body’s own immune response. This is an experimental drug still in clinical trials, yet Trump was able to receive it for “compassionate use”. Lastly, he received Remedesivir, a drug that is known to cut the duration of symptoms by five days. 

After receiving a cocktail of the newest drugs, treatments and 24/7 medical care by a full medical staff, Trump released another tweet to the American people saying that he was feeling really good and that we should not be afraid of COVID-19. He also said under his administration we were able to develop great drugs and knowledge. The only thing he fails to mention is that he is unbelievably privileged and was able to recover quickly through treatments that the average person does not have access to. On top of that, all of his treatments and medical care was fully funded by taxpayer dollars. Many Americans are struggling to pay medical bills and even hesitant to seek treatments because of the cost. I believe Trump’s inability to highlight how severe this virus is and how American’s are negatively affected by the medical system is disrespectful to the American people.

After months of Trump downplaying the severity of the virus that has had a massive impact for over 200,000 people in the US by telling people not to fear it, refusing to acknowledge the necessity of an executive order to mandate everyone to wear a mask and going against CDC recommendations and delegitimizing the science, he himself contracted the virus. I feel as though his tweet is insulting to the American people, anyone who has lost someone due to the virus and people without the same resources to relieve the suffering it causes. I believe this should have been a wakeup call for Trump, and to use this as an opportunity to apologize for the way he downplayed COVID-19 and acknowledge the privilege he had during treatment that most Americans do not.