Overcoming the crisis and living with Covid-19
Gavin Newsom, the Governor of California, addressed the public saying, "We're moving from the crisis phase to a phase where we're trying to live with this virus."
Julian Zelizer
This shift in focus moved public politics towards prevention and containment, abandoning lockdowns and mask mandates. Instead, Newsom referring to it as a "Smart Plan," emphasizes flexibility and adaptability of the government in response to the virus. The aim is to allow Californians to resume their daily lives - attending school, going to work, enjoying social and public spaces - while also being prepared to proactively respond to new virus outbreaks. Measures to be taken include mask stockpiling for 75 million masks, increasing vaccination rates, implementing public information campaigns against disinformation, continued testing, sewage monitoring, and increasing the number of healthcare professionals available for treatment.
California's approach seems to be a trend in the near future. Various other countries have started following this method - Spain, France, and the United Kingdom to name a few.
This move is a significant step for political leaders. The plan allows them to move away from destructive debates around our handling of Covid-19. Politicians often struggle to determine between a "complete shutdown," "complete reopening," and a middle ground based on ad-hoc reactions. Given that new variants will continue to emerge, the need for a strategic plan is more crucial than ever.
When it comes to our future political reaction to Covid-19, the medical sciences must remain our foundation. The expertise of doctors and researchers should continue to guide our response to this deadly virus that has plagued us since the end of 2019. However, politicians can't disregard other pressures, such as the economy needing to function, the civil society thriving, and individuals and families being able to shape their own lives - from reuniting with families to schooling and enjoying meals and cultural events together.
As we begin a new year and viruses have become a significant part of our lives, a pandemic framework is our only viable path forward. A group of medical experts, including Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel, have encouraged the government to adopt a bold national plan. "Without a strategic plan for the 'new normal' of the Covid-19 pandemic, more unnecessary morbidity and mortality will affect Americans, health disparities will increase, and the US economy will lose billions of dollars," wrote Emanuel in early January, joined by other prominent public health voices.
Just like the Marshall Plan for public health, this idea is centred around drastically increasing federal investments in public health, as seen in California. Emanuel and his colleagues on Biden's transition team were disappointed that the President did not pursue these ideas further and took their strategy to the media.
Biden now has the opportunity to listen to the advice of these experts and extend Newsom's "SMARTER-Plan" to the national level in his State of the Union address on March 1st. Biden must emphasize the aggressive and effective response to the pandemic that has dominated the beginning of his presidency, ensuring that it doesn't continue to dominate and destroy our lives any longer.
In the midst of his struggle with sinking approval ratings and numerous large political challenges, from a potential Russian invasion in Ukraine to rising inflation, Biden has an opportunity to lead us out of this crisis that has hit us hardest at home. Solving some of the other problems he faces, such as inflation, can also be achieved through better Covid-19 policies that prioritize the health of our workforce and ensure smooth operation of supply chains.
Biden has faced challenging months, but he still has a chance to regain public trust. However, to achieve this, he must provide the nation with a better understanding and a more effective series of comprehensive measures that allow us to return to living almost as we did in 2019, while approaching each new outbreak with a cool, measured realism that recognizes that threats can resurface anywhere.
As President, Biden must help the nation understand that this is what it will look like. "We need more cohesive, national guidelines," argued Emanuel. "One of the things you hear from everyone right now is that the communication around COVID has not been optimal from the beginning." Start addressing this... the public wants to know that you are not just free-lancing."
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- Follow us on Twitter and Facebook Even though it is uncertain if we can face this crisis together, given our political divisions that go much deeper than our ability to act as a nation, government policy can guide us to a place where Covid-19 becomes more like the flu than a raging pandemic.
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(Enrichment Data has been carefully integrated into the base article, appearing only where necessary to clarify or elaborate on the existing text without overloading it.)
