Recent weeks have seen a number of governors from the United States and officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as well as President Joe Biden, offer a hopeful message regarding the pandemic. "Covid-19 does not need to control our lives."
This is how Biden stated it in his State of the Union speech February 1, before a almost maskless House chamber.
"It is time for Americans get back to work, and fill our great cities again. He said that people who work from home can feel secure to go back to work.
California, Oregon, and Washington announced the lifting of school mask mandates on Saturday. Many cities, including New York, had recently eliminated proof-of-vaccination requirements. On Thursday, the CDC released data that showed that, according its new safety criteria, which is primarily based on Covid hospitalization rates, and local hospital capacities -- more then 90% of Americans no longer require to wear masks .
Some people have felt the shift quickly, as nearly 1,500 people are still dying from Covid every day.
Jennifer Nuzzo, an epidemiologist from Johns Hopkins University, stated that the pandemic was not over. "We say it is better, much better. Are there still many unnecessary deaths? Absolutely. We must be laser-focused on making certain that everyone is vaccinated.
Nuzzo is one of many public-health experts who has lived with extreme caution for the past two years. Her family was kept isolated until everyone was vaccinated, she said. Nuzzo and other experts, who used to advocate for safety measures such as lockdowns and mask mandates, are beginning to change their stances, but only slightly.
Tara Smith, a Kent State University College of Public Health professor of epidemiology, stated that her family was doing nothing at the beginning. "Probably the first six month were really locked down."
Smith, who lives in Ohio said that her family has taken two trips to Florida and Michigan since then. However, they chose to drive both times and choose places that are most outdoorsy.
Smith stated that Smith is still cautious, as Smith and her siblings share the caregiving responsibilities of their mother with immunocompromised.
"Honestly, our exposure has not increased a lot since then. We have to care for my mom." She said that we are still trying to limit our exposure.
Justin Lessler is an epidemiologist at University of North Carolina Gillings School of Global Public Health. He said that he and his family had no guests over until the vaccines were available. Lessler is also a caregiver for an immunocompromised relative and he and his wife are often in contact with people for work. He said that they felt an obligation not to expose others.
Lessler stated that while I might soon start eating outdoors, I believe I will wait until I'm ready for indoor dining or going face-maskless every day. We don't ask people for masks if we are only going to interact outdoors, but we do often invite people over [indoors], where everyone takes a quick test."
Nuzzo stated that she was encouraged by the CDC’s new method of assessing Covid risk, but cautioned people to not let their guard down yet.
She said, "I would really like to see that all the metrics and numbers are continuing to track down." "And I think that we can both celebrate it as well as be aware of the potential for things."
The Covid picture in the U.S. is looking better than it was a month ago. According to NBC News data, hospitalizations have decreased by at least 47 percent in every state, with some states seeing drops as high as 70%. The number of daily deaths has dropped by 43 percent over the past four weeks, compared to a seven-day average increase of more than 2,600 per person.
Lessler stated that he believes the U.S. is in a "situation where it is beginning to make sense to back some of these mandated measures." However, he warned, "I wouldn’t throw away your hands sanitizer, or your face masks."
He said, "I'm going to stay pretty much on that same path I have been for quite a while,"
