the value and cost of a life in a pandemic

There was a news report the other day that claimed that Netanyahu's big win in getting the vaccines to Israel among the first in the world was not such a big win - they claim Netanyahu paid double the value of the vaccines, and that is how he got them first. Not any sentimental story about the Holocaust and Greece and whatnot. Just supply and demand. Netanyahu was willing to pay double, so they sold it to him.

According to a Channel 12 News report, Netanyahu paid $30 per vaccine, while everyone is else is paying half of that. the exact details are not actually known, as the contract with Pfizer and Moderna are considered State secrets, or something like that, and not open to the public, but the report has its evaluations.

Since the report came out, many are very critical of Netanyahu for paying double.

First, this raises questions about his Jewishness - what kind of Jew pays retail, let alone double retail? Jews buy wholesale at discounted rates! 

More to the point, some say it is worth it - the value of saving a life is worth that price. Maybe, maybe not. If normally the value of a life is worth $15 per vaccine, why would we say it is worth $30 just because that's what Netanyahu paid?  Maybe it is worth that. I don't know. I don't know how to put a value on a life. Life is also worth $1000 and $10,000 and a million dollars. That wouldn't necessarily make it a good decision to pay that much for the vaccines.

My defense of Netanyahu is a little different.

The lockdowns and healthcare and shuttered businesses because of regulations/restrictions, the unemployment and all the ancillary costs of dealing with a pandemic are phenomenal. If we can get out of it faster, paying $30 per dose is a pittance compared to paying the costs of the pandemic for an additional several months had we paid the regular price and been vaccinating the country at a slower pace over a longer period of time.

Paying double is worth it, if it gets us out of the COVID-19 restrictions and lockdowns that much quicker and saves us all that other money that would have been lost on dealing with Corona issues. 

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