With the spike in the winter as the amount of COVID cases were rapidly climbing, people were concerned if there was going to be a drop in cases anytime soon. This panic was soon dismissed though, as the public quickly began to see a sigh of relief with cases dramatically dropping right after the middle of January.

This sharp decline in cases was actually predicted, as the more people get vaccinated, the more people will have some form of immunity to the virus. This also applies to people infected, as the more people that are infected have antibodies for some time that makes them less likely to be reinfected (Desert News). As far as hospitalizations go, they are down at least 50% compared to last month, which to many is still a vivid image of how much the hospitals were struggling not too long ago with such limited capacity (The Atlantic). 

Though this is promising news in states like Califonia, states that have been heavily impacted by the harsh winter storms such as Texas had to close many of their testing sights, possibly making some errors in the data. For the data they do have though, it appears that cases have gone down 56% compared to last week (CNN). Whether this information is completely accurate or not, the other states that have been getting accurate results are seeing a decline, which makes it likely there is at least some sort of decline happening in Texas.

With the more rapid distribution of vaccines, it has been easier to get more people vaccinated, but there is now the new problem of the new variants spreading. However, with the process of the vaccines speeding up, getting more people vaccinated can help lower the risk of many people getting and spreading these variants. Though there are a lot of unanswered questions about how effective these vaccines will be against some of the many new variants, scientists are constantly modifying the vaccines just like they do with the flu vaccine so it can be more effective against the new variants.

As the vaccines are bringing some sort of hope to our minds, last week an expert from John Hopkins University suggested that this pandemic could be nearly gone by April. His claims are that this virus has been more widespread than data supports, therefore “the US will soon hit a threshold beyond which the virus won’t be able to pass easily from person to person” (Insider). However, this is a very far-fetched idea, but obviously, in this situation, anything is possible, as time and time again we have been surprised by what has happened during this pandemic.

Even though we are seeing some hope with the decline in cases, people should still do their part so we can continue this downwards trend. Elaine Thio (10) is confident that practicing social distancing and wearing masks more has helped reduce the number of cases, saying “people should continue to follow the CDC guidelines, as they are proving to help reduce the spread as people are now realizing more it is the only way we can all get life back to normal again.” This means still wearing a face mask, preferably a double-mask, frequently washing your hands, and distancing yourself from those who aren’t from your household. With people continuing to comply with this, we can see even more positive news in the future. After all, just because the cases are down now doesn’t mean it is the right time to bring your guard down, as this is actually a more crucial time to practice these measures to keep up the positive work.