Society

Get ready to panic? Numerous reports say that COVID restrictions will return

Along with requesting citizens to go back to wearing masks, there could be a new batch of booster vaccines and the return to other pandemic protocols.

Médica poniendo una curita sobre el brazo de una mujer a la que acaba de vacunar.
(Pexels)
SANTIAGO OSPITAL
August 22, 2023
4 minutes read

The government plans to urge Americans to get a COVID-19 booster shot in the fall, a Biden administration official told Reuters. The White House official acknowledged that although the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) detected an increase in hospitalizations for the virus, overall levels still remain low.

Earlier this month, the World Health Organization (WHO) warned about the EG.5 variant. It entered the club of "variants of interest" monitored by the organization, which warned that characteristics such as its high rate of contagion could lead it to "spread globally and contribute to a surge in case incidence." Almost a week later, the WHO announced that it was monitoring a new variant, called BA.2.86, due to "its large number of mutations." Although, for the moment, it did not say if these would present changes such as the ease of infection or severity of the disease.

The CDC joined in monitoring the new variants. "Scientists are working now to understand more about the newly identified lineage in these 4 cases and we will share more information as it becomes available," Kathleen Conley, a spokeswoman for the agency, said in a statement picked up by CBS News.

'A mask can be your best friend'

Should Americans wear masks again? The question spread through national and international media over the last few weeks, following reports of new variants.

The New York Post talked to, among others, Dr. Sara Cody: "If I was someone who had an underlying health condition, I would accept a whole lot less risk ... and I would be very careful to mask."

Even though the declared emergency is over, COVID is still circulating — and it probably will be for quite some time. And so if you really don’t want to get sick, you can protect yourself by wearing a mask when you’re indoors. But it’s, at this point, an individual decision.

The Los Angeles Times wondered the same. "Right now, when things are heating up all around the country with COVID, you might want to think about [masking at] public transit and airports," said an infectious disease expert consulted by the newspaper.

The author of the article also wrote that numerous local authorities were reiterating that "masks work, but it’s a personal preference whether people wear them." He also recommended that "now might be a good time to mask up ahead of the big event and at the very least, in the highest-risk situations," like a wedding, a bus ride or a room full of people.

"New Covid variant BA.6 is 'probably' already in the US, experts warn - amid calls for masks to return," the Daily Mail headlined. One of the voices behind the call is professor of primary health care at the University of Oxford, Trisha Greenhalgh:

"A mask can be your best friend," said Kavita Patel, an MSNBC medical contributor and former Obama Cabinet member. Patel said on air that it was time to wear masks again, "especially as the school season starts, we don't want to see kids missing school."

Restrictions and equipment

At the same time as reports of new variants and calls to return to masks, a video went viral of Alex Jones claiming in “Info Wars” that he had information about the reimposition of pandemic restrictions.

A "high level manager in the TSA" reportedly assured Jones that by mid-September all airport employees must wear masks. By mid-October, "everyone flying will have to use masks." By December, "we expect a return to the full COVID protocol of 2020-2021."

Two federal agents reportedly confirmed the information.

After learning the information, Rep. Anna Paulina Luna promised to approach the TSA to find out what policy Jones' informants were referring to.

"Sources in DHS and Emergency Management (my field) are already preparing for lockdowns and restrictions," said Ryan Cunningham, a medical professional who blames his vaccination for causing heart failure. "Look at todays headlines. It’s a coordinated government & media campaign."

Natalie Winters, host and executive director of “War Room,” shared screenshots from an open site on government spending, USA Spending. They include expenses in, among others, COVID-19 tests and technical services to apply protocols against the virus:

At the moment, no member of the Biden administration has commented publicly on this information.

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