For most individuals, the primary concern during the COVID-19 pandemic is keeping their families safe and healthy. So, recent predictive modeling pointing to an alarming increase in infection rates is bound to heighten anxiety.
The dire predictions, and given the way that viruses work, some ask questions on the timing of Illinois governor JB Pritzker’s decision to move the State to Phase Four of the Restore Illinois Plan.
Aside from early criticism related to the availability of testing, foot-dragging on a State mask mandate, and ineffective handling of unemployment benefits, Pritzker’s efforts helped reduce the spread of COVID-19.
Governor Pritzker set the stage for dealing with the virus in a breaking-news proclamation and gave assurances that he’d rely on science and metrics to develop policy. With Midwestern swagger, Illinoisans got a much-needed shot in the arm when the governor stood up to White House bullying.
Once Pritzker and Dr. Ngozi Ezike, director of the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH), got into their stride, the duo exuded confidence. In laymen’s terms, they explained how contending with the pandemic would proceed, helping to ease anxiety.
But, moving the State forward when the emergence of new information suggests several troubling indicators is a chance. An announcement that young people are increasingly catching the virus and growing evidence that COVID-19 survivors may not have guaranteed immunity from reinfection are important scientific considerations.
The exponential rise in COVID-19 cases, in at least 20 states, is prompting a pause or rollback of reopening. The action is drastic, but necessary to combat the increasing rate of infections. It’s evidence that moving too quickly to reopen indoor dining, bars, and beaches are proven factors contributing to the resurgence of the virus.
There’s no sign of slowing down. The virus soars in Florida, Texas, and Arizona, and sets consecutive-daily infection and hospitalization records. Now careening toward human tragedy, the contagion that thrives on human behavior is exacerbated by partisan posturing that flies in the face of scientific fact.
In Illinois, where the COVID-19 infection rate has seen a slight uptick in recent days, there’s concern that entering the next phase during the Fourth of July weekend, amid a nationwide surge wasn’t wise.
When permitted to speak, Americans listen to the Nation’s leading infectious disease specialist, Dr. Anthony Fauci. In his just-the-facts manner, Dr. Fauci warns that the country could exceed 100,000 new cases of COVID-19 each day, something that would make in the near term, a return to pre-pandemic life far-fetched. Various scientific experts predict that the infection rate could go so high that wearing a mask won’t make a difference.
Rising infection rates in 42 states, including Illinois, are scary, and the realization that our best scientific minds haven’t been able to slow the pandemic is nightmarish. As the school year approaches, the urgent concern is that the virus may fortify, and strike with a vengeance during the coming flu season.
It’s difficult to accept that waning American exceptionalism is no match for what Mother Nature has unleashed on humankind. Yet, it’s better to walk back a reopening now than to crawl later.
False complacency, and refuting scientific evidence by pushing the coldhearted compromise that acceptance of an inconceivable death tally, is the price we must pay to save our faltering economy, isn’t the answer. It’s a slippery slope to buy-in on the premise that places a value on human life. Doing so will make regaining any semblance of normality more difficult.
Anthony Stanford is a columnist and author of “Copping Out: The Consequences of Police Corruption and Misconduct.”