The solutions are neither comfortable nor desirable. But they are simple.
Wear a mask when in public. Avoid close contact with others. Frequently wash your hands. Those represent the community commitment that is necessary to get us past the coronavirus pandemic.
When COVID-19 first landed on our shores, it was inconceivable that we would be repeating that mantra five months later. Yet here we are, in the nation with the most coronavirus infections and deaths, still trying to tamp down the virus.
In Clark County, more than 2,000 infections have been confirmed and, through Monday, 45 deaths have been attributed to the disease. Nationally, infection numbers remain persistent, significantly higher than those reported throughout June, when we supposedly had flattened the curve.
There are many reasons for COVID’s hold on the United States, starting with a botched federal response and extending to individual resistance to protective measures. Practically from the start of the outbreak, factions have declared that stay-at-home orders and suggestions to wear a mask are discomforting and an affront to their personal freedom. Those attitudes have contributed to the lingering pandemic, and the impact has been clear.
Students, teachers and parents are preparing for a continuation of remote learning when the school year begins weeks from now. Many businesses remain shuttered, further hampering the economy. And fall sports competitions are being delayed — until at least 2021. When fans of the Washington Huskies and Washington State Cougars lament having no Apple Cup to watch the day after Thanksgiving, they can reflect on the reasons the contest has been postponed.
The truth is that months into the pandemic, we still have months to go before life returns to anything resembling normalcy. Rigorous self-enforcement efforts are still required to protect yourself and your loved ones.
In late July, the New England Journal of Medicine published a study about global pandemic suppression from researchers at Harvard University and the United Kingdom. The findings emphasized “less than two months” of “stringent community control measures” — meaning everybody wearing a mask and nonessential spaces being shut down.
“If such measures were adopted now, transmission in many states could possibly be reduced to safe levels for mid-September or early October school reopenings,” the authors wrote. That was three weeks ago, and we are no closer now to a normal life. As Gov. Jay Inslee said last week, “Where we see the transmissions occur are when we let our hair down and have a good time with our friends.”
The desire for such activity is understandable, yet it is that desire that has prevented the United States from making strong progress in fighting the disease.
Locally, Clark County remains in Phase 2 of the state’s Safe Start reopening plan. Phase 3 would allow for the reopening of movie theaters, libraries and museums (at reduced capacity), along with outdoor sports activities. But data suggest the county is not yet ready for that step.
All of which reinforces the need for personal responsibility in the name of public health. As Dr. Anthony Fauci of the National Institutes of Health said: “We’ve got to get those numbers down. If we don’t get them down, we’re going to have a really bad situation in the fall … as you get indoors and you get the complications of influenza season.”
Reducing those numbers is relatively simple — even if we find it a bit uncomfortable.
