As COVID-19 Pandemic Eases, Experts Ponder the Future

As new COVID-19 case levels stabilize and hospitalizations and deaths continue to fall in most areas nationwide, experts are predicting what will happen next.

Voices across the spectrum say COVID-19 is likely here to stay, but at more predictable levels than what we've seen since the pandemic began. New cases in the U.S. are around 74,000 per day, a 4% increase over the past two weeks after nearly two months of steady decline. Roughly 70% of U.S. adults are fully vaccinated, and a lower dose of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine was recently approved for kids.

Coverage from right-rated outlets often struck a more optimistic tone about the pandemic's end and the future of managing COVID-19. Many quoted former Food and Drug Administration (FDA) commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb, who said over the weekend that "we’re close to the end of the pandemic phase." Some on the right argued that continued restrictions will have little impact on COVID-19's seasonal cycles and rising cases in winter months. Coverage from left- and center-rated sources more often framed the pandemic's end as uncertain while previewing the more manageable post-pandemic phase. Some quoted a CDC spokesperson who encouraged people to continue "measures that we know work -- vaccinating, wearing a mask in public, indoor settings, staying home when you are sick, and washing your hands frequently."