Record editorial: A return to normalcy appears close. But the coronavirus has proven unpredictable. – The Park Record

Take a deep breath, Parkites.

COVID-19 case numbers have plunged in recent weeks following the omicron-fueled surge that pushed coronavirus transmission to never-before-seen levels in Summit County and the rest of the state. For the first time since last summer, prior to the emergence of the delta and omicron variants, there is a sense of optimism that we may be nearing a point where the coronavirus recedes into the background of daily life.

State officials announced recently that they plan to close mass testing sites at the end of March and begin treating the coronavirus as endemic rather than as a pandemic. And the Summit County Health Department has indicated that it intends shortly to take a similar tack.

The current situation is particularly promising for people who are vaccinated or better yet, boosted. With case numbers similar to where they were in the early fall and hopefully continuing to decline, its reasonable for people whove been inoculated or have a measure of immunity through infection to let their guards down a bit as long as they abide by common-sense COVID guidelines.

The prospect of a time when we can learn to live with the virus like we do other diseases such as the flu is welcome as we near the two-year anniversary of the pandemic striking Summit County. It represents a kind of freedom that weve been largely living without since March 2020.

As weve seen time and again, though, predicting the course of the pandemic is tricky. There are simply too many variables to say with certainty whether we are at a turning point. It felt like we were there in the late spring and summer last year, but then the variants plunged us back into crisis.

The optimism many people are feeling as spring approaches is justified. But another variant could arrive and wash it away.

Are we truly entering a new, less dangerous phase of the pandemic, or even the long-awaited transition to the coronavirus becoming endemic? Or is this merely another brief period of calm before the disease returns with a vengeance?

Its far too early to know. But for the first time in months, a return to normalcy appears close. Heres to hoping it actually arrives.

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Record editorial: A return to normalcy appears close. But the coronavirus has proven unpredictable. - The Park Record