Dr. Fauci Says It's Time to Move Toward Post-COVID Normalcy
We are now 23 months into the “two week lockdown” that was going to “flatten the curve” of COVID, and, for many of us, the viral scourge is still a rather large part of our lives.
This is particularly true for folks in certain industries, where mask and vaccine mandates have become a hotly debated topic.
But cases are waning, thanks in large part to the speedy spread of the ostensibly “mild” omicron variant, which brought a great deal of natural immunity to America over the course of the last few months.
This has Dr. Anthony Fauci suggesting that it’s time to start bringing “normal” back.
“The world and the United States, and particularly certain parts of the United States, are just up to here with COVID, they just really need to get their life back,” Fauci said in an interview with Reuters. “You don’t want to be reckless and throw everything aside, but you’ve got to start inching toward that.”
Although more than 2,000 Americans continue to die from the coronavirus each day, the daily death total fell 9% last week from the previous week, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Rochelle Walensky said Wednesday. Deaths are a lag indicator – new infections and hospitalizations have been in decline for weeks, and both fell more sharply last week.
Fauci was finally willing to speak on the collateral impacts of the virus as well.
“Is the impact on mental health, is the impact on development of kids, is the impact on schools – is that balanced against trying to be totally pristine and protecting against infection?” he said. “I don’t have the right answer to that.”
The news will come as a pleasant surprise for many Americans, particularly coming from the ferociously-cautious Dr. Fauci.