CDC Chief Says When We'll Be Back to Normal
With coronavirus cases dropping, and vaccinations being distributed, there is "light at the end of the tunnel." But that light always seems far away. When will we actually return to normal? When can, in the words of one TV interviewer, walk down the street together without wearing masks? Dr. Rochelle Walensky, Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, appeared on Fox News Sunday with host Chris Wallace, to discuss exactly when life might return to normal. Read on to hear her prediction about how that return could happen—and to ensure your health and the health of others, don't miss these Sure Signs You've Already Had Coronavirus.
Dr. Walensky Was Asked When We'll Be Back to Something Approaching Normal
Wallace asked the question that's on everyone's mind. "Dr. Fauci"—that's Dr. Anthony Fauci, the chief medical advisor to the President and the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases—"says that by April, that it should be 'open season'—his words—for everyone who wants a vaccine to get a vaccine. But then later this week, this past week, President Biden said it could be past the summer before everyone actually gets the vaccination. I understand there's a difference between availability and the logistics and all of that. But let me ask you, when will everyone who wants a vaccine be able to get it, and when do you think that we're going to be back to something approaching normal?"
"We anticipate by the end of March, we'll have 200 million vaccines available," answered Dr. Walensky. "I'm proud to say that as of yesterday, we have put 50 million vaccines into people's arms. We anticipate by the end of the summer, we will have enough vaccine in order to vaccinate the entire U.S. population that is eligible."
There is one other hurdle however. "What I worry about is the vaccine hesitancy," she said. "So once we have enough vaccine, at some point, we're going to have more vaccine than people want it. And we very much need to make sure that everybody rolls up their sleeves when it's turn and when they're eligible. And much of the hard work that we're doing now is to ensure that we can inform all of those who might be hesitant now as to the reasons why it's safe and why it's effective."
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Dr. Walensky Said When We Return to Normal Depends on "How We Behave Right Now"
"Do you think that by the end of this year, you and I will be able to walk down the street without a mask?" asked Wallace.
"I think that very much, but depends on how we behave right now," answered Walensky. "I think we need to do all of, all of us need to do our part. If we have another surge, because we are not taking the proper mitigation strategies, I think it would be foolish for me to project."
So follow Fauci's fundamentals and help end this surge, no matter where you live—wear a face mask, social distance, avoid large crowds, don't go indoors with people you're not sheltering with (especially in bars), practice good hand hygiene, get vaccinated when it becomes available to you, and to protect your life and the lives of others, don't visit any of these 35 Places You're Most Likely to Catch COVID.
