How the Pandemic Will End

We are now officially in the fourth wave of the pandemic, according to Canadian health experts. It seems like it will never end, but it will eventually, although that doesn't mean that COVID-19 will be gone completely. Pulitzer-prize-winning journalist writes about the end state of the pandemic in another excellent article in The Atlantic. 

Here's what he has to say in his Twitter feed about the article.

The bottom line: Vaccines remain the best way for *individuals* to protect themselves, but *societies* can't treat them as the only defense. Delta is so transmissible that vacc'n can blunt it, but we still need masks & the rest.

The endgame is endemicity—the virus will still be here but won’t cause as much damage due to widespread immunity. Most people will meet it. The goals are: ensure as many as poss do so after 2 vax doses; and spread the other infections out. 

 There’s more in the piece, which has 3 parts

Part 1 is NOW: where we current are, how vaccines are holding up against Delta, whether vaxed people can transmit, why the current surge is happening, mask mandates, vax mandates, schools, and more. 

Part 2 is NEXT: what happens when this surge subsides, what the pandemic endgame actually is, and what the point of vaccination is, and why we still need other precautions.

Part 3 is EVENTUALLY: what happens when we reach the endpoint, and how to build something that leaves us better prepared for respiratory infections more generally. 

 As usual, I recommend reading Yong's article. He is one of the best and most insightful journalists covering the pandemic.