Although she had planned to keep her mask on after being fully vaccinated, the restaurant server was energized and ready to go. But Bad Bunny, a reggaeton superstar, took the stage and everyone went wild. Soon, she was unmasked strolling in trendy Portland neighborhoods with her friends.
After two years since the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 an epidemic, the world has seen a dramatic shift in the past two years. Now, relief and hope have returned after a long period of fear, loss and deep uncertainty.
Safrin stated that everyone was supposed to have a negative test or be vaccinated. She said she didn’t care and would just live her life. It was overwhelming to say the least, but it felt wonderful to feel normal again.
The world is now emerging from the brutal winter that was dominated by the contagious Omicron variant. This relief comes on the two-year anniversary since the outbreak of the pandemic.
The WHO declared on March 11, 2020, highlighting the seriousness of the threat posed by a virus that had previously ravaged mainly in Italy and China. On that date, the U.S. had 38 coronavirus-related deaths and 1,300 cases in the country. But reality was already sinking in. Stocks fell, schools closed, and people started wearing masks. Within hours, the NBA had cancelled games and Chicago’s massive St. Patrick’s Day parade was cancelled. Late-night comedians started filming from empty studios or their homes.
More than 6,000,000 people have been killed worldwide and nearly 1 million in the U.S. since then. Millions of people have lost their jobs, and students have suffered three years of disruptions. Although the vaccine was developed in December 2021, it saved many lives. However, political divisions, hesitancy, and inequalities in the health system have prevented millions from being vaccinated, prolonging this pandemic.
However, the situation is improving.
According to data from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, hospitalizations for COVID-19 sufferers have fallen by 80% over the past six weeks in the United States since mid-January, when there was a pandemic peak. They are now at their lowest level since July 2021. The trend line for case counts has remained the same, with the lowest numbers since last summer. Even the death toll, which is often lower than hospitalizations and cases, has been significantly reduced in the past month.
The WHO’s latest pandemic report stated that infections and deaths have fallen across the globe. Only one region, the Western Pacific, has seen an increase in cases. Cases in Africa and the Middle East dropped by 46% and 40%, respectively.
Another positive is that the omicron wave, vaccinations and coronavirus protection have provided enough protection for society so that future spikes are less disruptive, experts claim.
The pandemic’s shift is more evident in hospitals than anywhere else in the country, where there was an epidemic of critically ill patients months ago.
Julie Kim, chief nursing officer of Providence St. Jude Medical Center, Fullerton, California, is emotional when she recalls the darkest days of the pandemic. Nurses and doctors worked tirelessly and couldn’t return home because they were afraid to spread the virus.
During the summer 2020 spike there were 250 COVID-19-licensed patients in the hospital. The hospital was limited to 320 beds, so the hospital had offices available for extra bed space.
Kim stated that the pandemic is now under control and there are only four COVID-19-infected patients at the hospital as of Tuesday. The medical staff feel more equipped to deal with the disease thanks to the experience gained during those darkest days. She said that many people are still traumatized by the events of the past two-years and will never be the exact same again.
“It’s difficult to use the term ‘normal’ because I don’t believe we will ever return to pre-COVID status. Kim stated that we are adapting and moving forward. Many of us have suffered. Some people are making progress, while others are still struggling to deal with the situation.
All COVID-19 measures, including vaccine requirements, mask mandates and vaccine requirements, are being eliminated. In two weeks, the last state-level mask mandate in America, Hawaii, will expire.
However, experts in health advise caution.
Dr. Albert Ko is an infectious-disease doctor and epidemiologist at Yale School of Public Health. He said that it was certainly encouraging to see the U.S. at the tail end of a peak. He cautioned against declaring victory, particularly with the possibility of another variant around the corner.
Ko stated that “new variants are constantly emerging and these new variants fuel large waves of epidemic waves.” “The big question is whether they will be as severe or milder than omicron. Is it possible they will be more severe? Unfortunately, that’s not something I can predict.”
After a long winter, Portlanders are returning to the gym, concert halls and movie theaters. Bars and restaurants are crowded once again. Safrin stated that many of her customers tell her they are returning to the restaurant for their first time in months.
Kalani Pa, a Portland suburbs owner of an Anytime Fitness franchise, said that the past two years nearly drove him out the door. But, with Oregon’s mask mandate expiring Friday, his small gym suddenly seems to be coming back to life. This week, the franchise signed three new members in one day. A coffee shop was also opened next to the gym. The space had been vacant for months and drove up foot traffic.
Before Pa rushed off to give a tour, Pa stated that sometimes things get worse before they get better.
The demand for testing is also down.
Jaclyn Chavira recollects the terror on the faces of people as they waited in Los Angeles to get tested during the late 2020 surge. This caused an astounding 250,000 infections and over 3,000 deaths per day across the U.S.
Over the next few weeks, infected cars swarmed the Dodger Stadium test site. Some days, the line stretched almost two miles.
Chavira’s nonprofit, CORE, conducted 94,000 tests per week at 10 locations in Los Angeles County during the peak of the omicron wave. They conducted 3,400 tests last week. Most of them were required for work or travel purposes, and not because someone was sick, she stated.
Chavira said, “You can feel the relief.”
However, not everyone is ready to get back in. Many people will recall last year’s mask rules being relaxed and COVID-19 appearing to be loosening its grip, only to be repelled by the emergence of the delta and omicron versions.
Amber Pierce works at a Portland bar-restaurant and was out of work almost a whole year because of COVID-related layoffs. She narrowly avoided an infection when the virus infected her workplace. She said that a regular customer died in the winter’s peak.
Even though she wears a mask outdoors, she was still wearing it. She was also eating pizza outside because her brother was visiting.
She applied hand sanitizer and said “I’m going make sure there’s no spike once those masks are off.”
She said, “It’s still anxiety of it.” “It doesn’t matter if you get really sick, it will hit you.”
