Spring 2021 will be one of the key points in the coronavirus pandemic and could determine whether there will be another surge of cases, according to CNN.
CDC director Dr. Rochelle Walensky told the National League of Cities Monday that March and April are crucial months in the fight against COVID-19, CNN reports.
- “There is so much that’s critical riding on the next two months,” she said. “How quickly we will vaccinate versus whether we will have another surge really relies on what happens in March and April.”
Similar view
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the White House chief medical adviser, said Tuesday that the recent decline in COVID-19 cases is “going down a little more slowly” than it had before, CNBC reports.
- Fauci said he’s worried “we might plateau again at an unacceptably high level.”
Michael Osterholm, director of the University of Minnesota’s Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy, told NBC’s “Meet the Press” last weekend that the current vaccination rate is in a race with the spread of new COVID-19 variants.
- “We are in the eye of the hurricane right now,” Osterholm said. “Things are going very well, we see blue skies.” But the recent U.K. variant “is about to come upon us. Today it’s wreaking havoc in parts of Europe.”
What you can do
Fauci still recommends wearing masks, staying socially distant and getting vaccinated when you can. He said the virus can’t spread and mutate if it can’t infect people.
Context:
These statements come as some states — like Texas — are rolling back their restrictionsduring the pandemic, as I wrote for the Deseret News. At the same time, people around the nation are gathering again in large groups. Like in Texas, there was a mask-off partyto celebrate the change in restrictions. For example, people in Idaho recently gathered en masse to protest masks, which is something we’ve seen be a cause of contention throughout the entire pandemic.