No, but they ARE a proxy for illness and death resulting from failure to protect by masking, social distancing and vaccination. Read what’s written, not what you’d like to argue about. I’ve been in healthcare for decades — masks, social distancing and vaccines save lives. I don’t much care if you or anyone else disagrees with my position, since my “position” is based on hundreds of years of data — and hundreds of thousands of lives saved. You and your so-called intelligent folks can shop somewhere else — whatever the fuck that means.