The UN World Health Organization confirmed that COVID-19 was over after months of being quarantined. However, COVID cases have begun to rise again. The thought of being quarantined again has upset many people around the world. People have started to ask what will happen next– whether we will be able to withstand another pandemic or if we have enough resources.

As COVID cases have begun to increase, residents of Orange County are starting to be affected by COVID-19 once again after they confirmed it to be over. There is concern among residents of Orange County that there won’t be sufficient resources to contain another outbreak. Disease spreads quickly and with the holidays just around the corner, people worry that COVID might come back just as bad and cause another world wide pandemic. Since diseases spread quickly with holiday gatherings on their way, people worry that COVID might start up again.

Lots of people like to host events and gatherings during holidays. During Halloween kids go around asking for candy, but you never know if the person giving is sick or has something. Lots of families like to have gatherings during New Year’s and Christmas. These gatherings involve close interaction with family members. We can transmit sickness and diseases like that.

Most people think that since they officially declared COVID to be over, they don’t need to wear facemasks or follow any of the past guidelines. Some still wear facemasks, keep their distance, disinfect, and do everything possible so that they don’t get sick. But with COVID on the rise, it would be better to stay on the safe side.

“It’s always better to stay safe than to risk it,” Steve Phan, a second year medical student at UCI School of Medicine, said.

Some people may not be wearing facemasks or taking care of themselves like they did when the big pandemic first happened. But getting vaccinated is also another way to protect yourself. There are a few shots you can get and now there is even a booster to help you stay healthy. Avoiding large crowds reduces the risk of getting sick compared to being in a big group.

As far as COVID cases go, they’re not on the rise as much as people would think they are or would be. According to the OC care health agency just this week there have been 516 positive COVID cases out of the 7,333 people who have tested to ensure that they don’t have COVID. There have been 16 deaths. COVID cases are not rising as much, but as the holidays are around the corner people should start to take care of themselves.

“Johns Hopkins case counter is actually shut down because cases have gone down so low and people are not testing as much anymore since they’re not scared of COVID anymore,” Phan said.

COVID is becoming less and less of a worry for people. But what people don’t consider is that COVID-19 is a virus that can mutate fairly quickly. Cases aren’t rising as much as expected, but there’s a new booster from an organization called COVID Sage to help people avoid getting sick. Although as of now COVID isn’t as deadly as it was when the pandemic happened, people should still take care of themselves.

COVID can also affect schools. When the pandemic first started, schools shut down and classes were no longer in person. We had to wear face masks when we finally started going to school in person. Now most students don’t wear facemasks. COVID guidelines aren’t as strict anymore. A positive test no longer results in students being required to quarantine. Now they miss a few days of school until they feel better and then they can come back to school.
“We no longer quarantine if there is an exposure. We do isolate them if they test positive. If someone tested positive, they would need to be isolated at home for five days from when the symptoms started. They can return on the sixth day if they test negative on the fifth day,” school nurse Jenny Lou Ly Said.
COVID symptoms differ based on the person and how strong their immune system is. Some people have COVID-19 but don’t have any symptoms. We know them as carriers who just pass it on. While others do have symptoms and others can die due to it.
MCHS teacher Kathleen Peterson states what her symptoms were while infected with COVID and how it felt.
“It felt pretty much like I had a bad cold. I was congested with a runny nose and cough. The cough actually took me almost a month to get rid of,” Peterson said.