(Updated at 10 a.m.) We’re one year and nine months into the pandemic and it’s probably safe to say that most people just want things to be largely back to normal.
And, aside from wearing masks and working remotely, in many ways it is.
Most people are vaccinated. Covid-related hospitalizations, at least in Arlington, are relatively low. You can eat inside at restaurants, attend sporting events, go to school — basically do anything you used to be able to do, with only minor modifications.
There’s also good news on the return-to-normality front: a forthcoming Pfizer anti-viral drug holds the promise of further reducing severe illness and death from Covid, while an antibody cocktail appears effective in combating Covid among the immunocompromised, for whom vaccine effectiveness is limited.
Plus, there’s talk the the pandemic phase of the Covid era may be coming to an end soon.
"The end of the pandemic at least as it relates to the United States is in sight right now," says @ScottGottliebMD. "The bottom line is we have an overwhelming toolbox right now to combat COVID." pic.twitter.com/8qxwj73GBf
— Squawk Box (@SquawkCNBC) November 5, 2021
On the other hand, it seems unlikely that we’ll return to pre-pandemic work habits, at least among those office dwellers. Two-thirds of white collar workers are still working remotely at least part time, and 91% of workers hope remote work is here to stay, according to a recent Gallup poll.
And for those with health conditions that make them vulnerable to Covid — or who have members of their household with such conditions — the threat is still here. In Arlington, the seven-day moving average of new cases has actually risen in each of the past four days, reaching 28 daily cases today after bottoming out around 20, according to Virginia Dept. of Health data.
Given all of the above, if you had to arbitrarily assign a percentage to it, to what degree is your life back to a pre-pandemic normal?