To the editor:

I read the poignant column by Kathryn Lamb in Lake Placid about the travails of her son suffering from vaping-related complications. One of the main concerns of the scientific and medical communities about the COVID-19 pandemic has not simply been the death rate of the virus but hospitalizations of infected people who got really sick and would be competing for hospital resources with people suffering from other medical conditions. Ms. Lamb and her son were fortunate that the pandemic has been (mostly) well managed in upstate New York and there were plenty of intensive-care-unit resources available to help him get better. This is not the case in some other parts of the country, where “leaders” spent months in denial about the virus’ seriousness.

Brian Farenell

Glens Falls