Since 2020, the coronavirus pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2 has been a widespread threat, forcing us to change the ways we go about our lives. Our resilience has been tested through mask mandates, quarantines, and Zoom classes. While surges slow, many people wonder: Is Covid truly over?
Currently, the U.S. is experiencing rising cases and hospitalizations, and although deaths from Covid-19 have steadily decreased, experts wonder if yet another winter surge is on its way. A sign of even more cases on their way is the pattern of increasing cases seen in Europe. In the past, European infections have hinted at what will happen with the situation in the U.S., so we could be plunged into another resurgence of the disease.
Airports, schools, and other public places have slowly reduced cautionary steps to prevent the virus. Most locations don’t require mask-wearing, and the extreme sanitizing that was heavily enforced at the beginning of the pandemic is no longer being as strictly followed. For many people, this feels like a step towards a world without Covid, back to what life was like before all the quarantines and mandates.
However, as health regulations lower, it could prove easy for Covid to become even more contagious. Recently, President Biden made a premature statement that the pandemic is over, which could contribute to people not getting vaccinations that could be vital to stamping out Covid-19.
While most experts agree that Covid won’t leave any time soon, a study done at Yale predicts that within two years, Covid-19 could transition to endemic status. This means that the virus would be something like the flu or a cold, due to natural exposure, and growing immunity.
The answer to if Covid has ended, or will soon end, depends on us and what precautions we take. In the meantime, staying up to date with vaccines and being sanitary could bring us another step closer to a world without the pandemic.