That's disgracefully ignorant and stunningly callous, even for Bill O'Reilly, whose character is infamously decayed. Young, previously vibrantly healthy people have died from COVID-19, and many have suffered from excruciatingly. Healthcare workers who've shown up to their shift on time and given their all in their dedicated service to the wellbeing of others have lost their lives to it, including those who should have had decades ahead of them. I have four physicians in my family who are treating patients with COVID-19, and two in hospitals in areas with higher than average outbreaks. There are refrigerated trucks for the overfill of bodies.
Hundreds of young Americans have now been killed by the coronavirus, data shows
ER doctor: ‘Just because they are young doesn’t mean they aren’t vulnerable’
One of the frightening aspects is that we don't the extent and force of potential long-term impacts from this virus yet. My health was irreversibly damaged by a virus I had as an infant, and I am at increased risk for novel coronavirus and other communicable diseases because of it.
For survivors of severe COVID-19, beating the virus is just the beginning. Young people who survive novel coronavirus now could develop secondary health problems as a result of it.
It's also cruel because even someone who is on "their last legs anyway" is still a sentient being, oftentimes loved by many who are deprived of the chance to even say goodbye because they have to keep their distance. It's a heartbreakingly awful way to die. Earlier this week I attended the online funeral of a lovely man who was a senior citizen but younger than O'Reilly (who is 70).
O'Reilly's comments have consistently been reckless. The illusion that youth provides an armor to this virus emboldened so many to disregard the pleas for social distancing at the beginning of the outbreak.
Not only has misinformation contributed to the hospitalizations of many young people, inflicting suffering that can be excruciating, it's put healthcare workers more at risk, and siphoned off manpower needed to care for those who are elderly and more fragile medically. He's contributed to the pandumbic that has worsened this pandemic.