Any time you play with evolution there's a potential for it to backfire.

Respiratory viruses such as rhinovirus, influenza, and coronavirus are NOTORIOUS for rapid mutation, but also generally have a miniscule impact on healthy young and and middle age people. Occasionally you get a strain like spanish flu, and those tend to extinguish themselves for being suboptimal compared to less devastating strains.

Frankly, I just don't see the value in mounting a response to respiratory viruses in general. I think for the energy and wealth we spend every year trying to deal with flu, we could be doing other things and only a few more old and immunocompromised would die every year from it.

The second we knew that 19 wasn't another spanish flu, we should have stopped trying to combat it and just made sure that surge capacity was available. Which we did and ultimately didn't use.

Any time you play with evolution there's a potential for it to backfire.

Respiratory viruses such as rhinovirus, influenza, and coronavirus are NOTORIOUS for rapid mutation, but also generally have a miniscule impact on healthy young and and middle age people. Occasionally you get a strain like spanish flu, and those tend to extinguish themselves for being suboptimal compared to less devastating strains.

Frankly, I just don't see the value in mounting a response to respiratory viruses in general. I think for the energy and wealth we spend every year trying to deal with flu, we could be doing other things and only a few more old and immunocompromised would die every year from it.