A southern Illinois doctor says she agrees with the CDC's latest recommendation that vaccinated people should wear face coverings again, but she worries it will cause fewer people to get vaccinated.
Pamela Hunter-Reach with Union County Hospital says it's hard to convince people to get their shot when they see vaccinated people basically under the same rules as them.
She knows people are more tired than ever about the pandemic, especially after some optimism in May when the CDC said vaccinated people could do away with their masks.
After seeing a possible light at the end of the pandemic tunnel earlier this year when vaccines were rolling out, variants have caused a setback.
Dr. Pamela Hunter-Reach with Union County Hospital says she understands why people are confused by the changing guidelines, so her best advice is for everyone to mask up.
Dr. Hunter-Reach says officials there is a delicate balance between what society is willing to tolerate and what the science is telling them is the best course of action.
The frequently changing guidance with the ongoing pandemic can be frustrating, but a southern Illinois doctor says there are reasons why CDC recommendations are adjusted.
Dr. Pamela Hunter-Reach with Union County Hospital says scientists are watching the COVID-19 variants of concern, which are spread easier and make people sicker.
Dr. Hunter-Reach says scientists have determined none of the variants so far are of high consequence, which means the vaccine would no longer protect people from the virus.
She says vaccine efficacy remains at around 85 percent even with the more contagious variants.
Scientists at the World Health Organization are saying COVID-19 is likely to become endemic, or permanently circulating in the population.
Dr. Pamela Hunter-Reach at Union County Hospital says she hopes that's not the case, but she can understand why some are thinking that way.
She says while we focus on what's going in the U.S., this is a worldwide pandemic.
The W-H-O says the four other human coronaviruses that have become endemic are responsible for about a quarter of all colds.
The most recent endemic coronaviruses were discovered in the wake of the SARS outbreak nearly 20 years ago.
