Opinion

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Science has defanged Covid – so let’s learn to get on with our lives

Devi Sridhar

Delaying and preventing infection as much as possible through this pandemic was a worthwhile strategy. In early 2020, there were few treatments, limited testing and no vaccines. The costs of those lockdowns were big, but the effort to buy time paid off. In that time, science has transformed Covid from a deadly virus to a much less serious, nasty disease – one that is manageable at home, for the vast majority of those vaccinated. It has, largely, defanged it.

But even as we have had success treating and preventing serious infections, S ars-CoV-2 has become increasingly transmissible. Official survey data indicates that one in 15 are positive in England. While the good news is that the Omicron variant is resulting in less severe disease and a smaller fraction of hospitalisations, so many people are infected and isolating that critical services are struggling with staffing. This is what is driving governments to rethink isolation policies and ask whether they are becoming more disruptive than the virus itself.

In England the prime minister announced that restrictions including masking requirements were to be removed this week, and self-isolation requirements will be reviewed in March. For policymakers, it’s a bit like landing an aeroplane on an icy landing strip. The fuel of public patience is running low; and wear and tear, in the form of economic and social damage, has built up over two years in a holding pattern. The need to land is obvious, and we have the tools to do so, but it’s still a tricky feat in current conditions.