Anti-vax costs us all

It was recently reported that nearly four times as many law enforcement officers died of COVID-19 from 2020-21 than were killed in the line of duty. Although law enforcement won’t release the vaccination status of these officers, it is safe to say that the vast majority of the 550 or so officers who have died of COVID during this pandemic were unvaccinated.

Evidently these facts don’t bother Sheriff Knezovich, whose office is advertising law enforcement positions by purposely stating that mandatory vaccinations are not required. If they had been required, most of these officers would be alive today.

Law enforcement and firefighters across the nation are classifying COVID deaths as an in-the-line-of-duty death, which in Washington state allows for a state death benefit of $266K to the spouse or heir, a state pension of 60% of the officer’s salary for life, and other benefits. These benefits may be justified for a public service employee killed on the job, but to pay a COVID death benefit for a cop or firefighter who refuses to be vaccinated is ludicrous.

Not only are the anti-vax people taking up most of the ICU beds, they are costing billions of tax dollars

nationwide to accommodate them. They say it’s their personal freedom to choose not to be vaccinated. How about my freedom to not pay for someone else’s stupidity?

Terry Neumann

Spokane Valley