Rising COVID cases should not alter normality

Audrey Kercher '23, Breaking News Manager|May 3, 2022

Graphic by Audrey Kercher ’23

Despite rising COVID cases, cases are less severe as more people are vaccinated and less deaths are occurring due to COVID. This means that people will remain safe without bringing back COVID restrictions.

Spring of 2022 is looking far different from spring of 2021. As opposed to the masks, clear plastic lunch dividers and strict COVID restrictions of the past year, this year boasts uncovered faces, packed sports stands and normality. But, as we all know, COVID is not really over.

Sadly, COVID cases continue to rise, but people are so tired of the virus and all the stresses associated with it that they have stopped tracking close contacts and are no longer following the safety guidelines. Even our own Governor Lamont has let his guard down enough to catch the virus earlier this month. 

I include myself with the masses of people who are sick of this virus (no pun intended), and while I know there are still real dangers associated with it, life must move on. In order to fully move past this pandemic era of our lives, we must treat COVID like any other common cold or sickness.

 

Staples students have traveled not only throughout the country, but around the world over this past spring break. Although there might be a surge in cases, this should be no cause for concern or initiate the return of masks or restrictions. 

According to the New York Times, there were 260 cases in the past week in Connecticut, but as long as infected people stay home and people of higher risk remain cautious, then the general population should be safe.

Despite COVID cases increasing, the death rate is decreasing and is predicted to continue following this trend, ensuring less severe COVID cases and less cause for concern.Deaths from COVID in the US have decreased by 9.4% from only last week according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. 

At this point in the pandemic, COVID fatigue has definitely hit us all, and rightfully so. Most people have built antibodies that help fight the virus and lessen the symptoms due to contracting the virus already. 79.1% of Connecticut is already vaccinated to prevent the spread without need for the return of strict restrictions, according to Connecticut Public. 

The struggle to move the pandemic to an endemic is of utter importance. The key to shifting to an endemic is changing the way we think about COVID. According to the American Medical Association, COVID must be tracked by severity of cases instead of number of cases, normalizing COVID into being as common as a cold or the flu. 

As someone who has lost half of my high school experience to COVID-19, this is my plea to maintain normality even when cases rise.