During the first year of the pandemic, most people believed the world had a shot at eradicating COVID-19. Now, it’s clear this is not possible. There are ebbs and flows in the progression of a virus, so COVID-19 might yet go away, or it might become mild enough to be irrelevant, which seems to be the optimistic discourse right now. But if COVID-19 does fade, it won’t be because of anything people did. Rapid mutations and imperfect inoculations mean that the virus is in charge, at least for now.
Public health experts have come to terms with what that means for the United States and Europe, from permanent widespread testing to routine vaccinations. But it will be just as important that experts and policymakers figure out how less affluent parts of the world can live with this illness.
