The coronavirus pandemic has not only impaired everyone’s privilege to lead normal lives, but also severely affected their ability to earn money. The lockdowns have forced numerous industries to temporarily halt operations, and this is becoming a big problem for most since there is no certainty on when the pandemic would end.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued return-to-work guidelines, but they are only applicable to a limited number of workplaces. Furthermore, they are mainly for people on the front lines, giving little hope to other working sectors that are already struggling to make both ends meet during such a difficult time, as per Harvard Health Publishing.
The CDC’s guidelines apply to healthcare workers, critical infrastructure workers, law enforcement people and those working outside of healthcare who have already confirmed or suspected COVID-19, or have been exposed to someone with confirmed or suspected COVID-19. They are advised to return to work as long as they no longer show symptoms, have undergone testing and passed, and follow regulations that promote public health and safety.
Given that there is still no vaccine or cure for COVID-19, other workplaces in the society do not have definite timelines on when they can resume normal operations. It would be a gamble for some to resume work while the novel coronavirus continues to wreak havoc all over the world.
However, the head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Dr. Anthony Fauci, who currently serves as member of the White House’s coronavirus task force, believes that the U.S. could push for a gradual reopening as soon as May 2020. But there is a caveat. This would only be possible if mitigation efforts turn out to be effective against the deadly virus.
Nevertheless, Fauci has expressed “cautious optimism” since according to him, the coronavirus outbreak is slowing down in the country even though the U.S. remains to be the epicenter of the pandemic, with 828,441 cases and 46,379 deaths documented as of late.
Even if more and more people could return to their jobs in the coming months, restrictions and precautions will likely remain in place for some time until a potent cure or vaccine against the novel coronavirus emerges. This just means that life won’t be back to normal anytime soon.
