With Omicron ripping through the country as the COVID-19 pandemic enters its third year, it behooves all of us to practice proper safety measures. Regardless of how much pandemic fatigue you’re currently suffering, the simple fact of the matter is that it’s not yet safe to let your guard down entirely. While there’s no denying that pandemic safety measures involve making small changes to our daily routines, none of these alterations should prove terribly inconvenient – or even particularly hard.
Wear Masks in Public Spaces
Although many states and businesses rolled back their mask mandates toward the beginning of the vaccine rollout, such actions may have been premature. Given how many infections and deaths, there have been over the last year, it’s strongly advised that you continue masking up in public, regardless of whether your state or the business you’re visiting currently has masking rules in effect – and regardless of whether you’re vaccinated.
Furthermore, if you have access to them, make a point of wearing high-quality N95 masks whenever you venture out into public or interact with someone new. For added protection, take care to practice social distancing whenever possible.
Get Vaccinated and Boosted
Only people with medical conditions that prohibit vaccination have any excuse to be walking around unvaccinated at this point. So, unless you happen to be such an individual, you’ll need to get vaccinated at your earliest possible convenience. While vaccination shouldn’t be regarded as invulnerability to COVID-19, it will dramatically reduce your likelihood of developing a serious or fatal case of the novel coronavirus. It should also be noted that the CDC has now updated its recommendations and strongly encourages people to get the mRNA vaccines – i.e., Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech – over the Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen vax.
For maximum protection, you’ll need to follow up your initial vaccination series with a booster shot. People aged 12 and up who received Pfizer-BioNTech and adults aged 18 and up who received Moderna for their initial vaccination series are eligible to receive a booster shot at least five months after their second shot. Furthermore, adults aged 18 and up who received the Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen vaccine are eligible to receive a booster at least two months after their initial shot. However, even if you initially received the J&J/Janssen vax, you can still get one of the mRNA vaccines as your booster.
Many immunocompromised individuals are now eligible to receive an additional booster shot once the appropriate amount of time has passed following their initial vaccination series. So, if you suffer from compromised immunity, there’s a good chance you’re eligible for another booster. Additionally, if your compromised immunity stems from a disability or qualifies as a disability in and of itself, consider looking into long term disability insurance.
Embrace Remote Shopping and Contactless Pickup Options
With Omicron doing its worst and infection numbers high, venturing into crowded public spaces is a fairly risky venture at the present time – particularly in areas with low vaccination rates and/or enthusiasm for masking. As such, it’s in your best interest to take full advantage of remote shopping and contactless pickup options. This will help ensure that close contact with potentially infected parties is kept at the barest of minimums without inhibiting your ability to purchase the things you want. Whether you’re looking to buy groceries or purchase gun parts, finding a remote shopping option shouldn’t prove difficult.
Avoid Direct Interactions with Infected Parties
For the sake of your safety and the safety of those around you, take care to avoid direct interactions with individuals suffering from active COVID-19 infections. Even if the party in question has a mild or asymptomatic case of the novel coronavirus, there’s no guarantee that the people to whom they spread the virus will be as lucky.
If ever direct contact can’t be avoided, make sure to wear masks and gloves if good quality like the ones from Primo Dental Products, and make sure to always wash you hands and use sanitizer.
After two solid years of living with COVID-19, many of us are suffering from acute pandemic fatigue. However, as much as we’d love for the pandemic to reach a definitive end, we simply aren’t there yet. Furthermore, frustration with the pandemic’s duration is no reason to let your guard down or stop taking precautions, as such behavior is liable to result in serious consequences. While adhering to proper safety protocols certainly takes some adjustment, you’re likely to find that doing so isn’t terribly demanding on your time or resources.
