The spread of the coronavirus is still a serious problem in certain parts of the country, but it is clear that the prescribed solutions for containing or slowing down this spread have failed us.
Take, for example, Southern California. Hospitals throughout the region are under significant strain as positive cases continue to roll in. In the San Joaquin Valley region, specifically, the healthcare system’s intensive care unit capacity has dipped down to 0%, meaning there are few, if any, ICU beds available.
Across the state, there were 50,000 new cases reported on Tuesday and Wednesday. For perspective, Brazil, which is experiencing one of the world’s worst COVID-19 outbreaks, recorded just over 70,500 cases on Wednesday. Brazil’s population is more than five times larger than California’s. At California’s per capita outbreak rate, Brazil would have about 260,000 cases, not just 70,000.
These numbers are made even more astounding by the fact that California has some of the strictest restrictions in the country. Gov. Gavin Newsom implemented a new lockdown on Dec. 3, banning outdoor and indoor dining, shutting down hair and nail salons, and prohibiting private gatherings of any size. None of these restrictions seem to have had a positive effect on the virus’ spread, in part because many Californians have stopped listening.
Several restaurants have found ways to circumvent Newsom’s outdoor dining ban by allowing customers to pick up their own food, since takeout is still legally allowed. Other personal-care businesses are protesting the lockdown, arguing that Newsom is unfairly targeting smaller businesses that don’t have as much political or financial influence. Some of these businesses, such as beauty salons, remain open and provide services in a sort of black market.
Community members have rallied behind them. Thousands of Californians have gathered to protest Newsom’s lockdown over the past month to make it known that they’ve had enough.
They’re not alone. Pandemic fatigue has affected people across the country to the point where nearly 40% of the families that complied with coronavirus restrictions back in March are no longer doing so now, according to a recent survey.
Who can blame them? A long-term lockdown with no end in sight was never going to work. Many of us warned officials back in May that the states needed a more realistic strategy that would not require businesses to shut down every time the caseload spiked, and one that had a clear, distinct goal. Back in March, that goal was to prevent the healthcare system from being overwhelmed. Then, the goalposts shifted, again and again and again, until the purpose of the lockdown became indiscernible to everyone, including the officials in charge of implementing these policies.
Which brings us to where we are now. The coronavirus is still around, as are the lockdowns, but fewer and fewer people are willing to comply with restrictions they’ve seen their own officials defy. Even the hope of a vaccine has been dulled by health officials’ warning that widespread vaccination won’t guarantee a return to normalcy right away.
This was all preventable. Officials should have set clear expectations with strict expiration dates. Instead, they chose to make up the rules as they went, diminishing the public’s confidence in the entire strategy along the way.
