Experts warn US risks delaying ‘normal’ summer

President Biden’s announcement that there will be enough vaccines for all adults by May is raising hopes the U.S. could soon return to a semblance of normalcy.

But the next few months in the pandemic are critical.

Concern is growing over moves by some states to lift restrictions even as new variants of the virus are on the rise in the U.S.

Health officials are calling for restrictions to remain in place for the final stretch, saying that it will not be much longer before the situation markedly improves. It doesn’t make sense to lift the restrictions now, they say, when widespread vaccinations are almost within reach.

Thomas Tsai, a researcher at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, said that by summer, “I think we can have a much more, I don’t want to say normal, but at least a ‘new normal’ summer.”

The near term is risky and uncertain: Experts warn that the return to normal could actually be delayed if restrictions are lifted too soon, causing a new spike in cases in the near term.

Tsai likened the current situation to the seventh inning stretch of a baseball game.

“Progress has been made; it’s OK to take stock of that,” he said. “How we play the next two innings determines if this is a single game or turns into a doubleheader.”