A placebo is a pill that a doctor gives to a patient, knowing that it will do nothing to heal the patient's body, but hoping that the gesture will lift the patient's spirits, making the patient feel a bit better. The pill may be inert, or it can be an actual drug useful in treating other conditions. Doctors have engaged in this practice for a very long time, because it is an act of caring, if not curing, and a doctor is responsible for the care as well as the cure of a patient.
In our current situation, placebos are being used to distract patients and - well, just about everybody - from the grim shortages of ventilators, tests, gowns, masks, and gloves, and the nonexistence of a vaccine and an actual therapeutic drug.
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