We’re still in a pandemic

It’s tempting to be lulled by the ebb and flow of the COVID-19 pandemic. But the trends lately should be a wake-up call to all of us — including public health officials and government leaders — not to drop our guard.

Yes, we know: After more than two years, this is getting old. There were reports of people cheering and tearing their masks off on airplanes when the word came down Monday that a federal judge — nominated by former President Donald Trump and confirmed despite a rating of “unqualified” by the American Bar Association — struck down the federal mask mandate on aircraft and other mass transportation, a decision whose soundness some legal experts question. We’re all familiar with the open animosity some parents have expressed at school board meetings around the country. And as states, localities and businesses have relaxed mask mandates, it had been starting to feel something like normal again.

It is not. But while that’s unwelcome news, there’s an upside: Most Americans, it turns out, aren’t in denial.

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They can see the red flags, especially in upstate New York, where earlier in the week the Centers for Disease Control listed 10 counties at high risk of transmission. Only one other county in the country, in Kansas, was listed at high risk. As of Friday, Albany and Rensselaer counties had moved from medium risk to high risk.

The Times Union’s Rachel Silberstein reports that COVID -19 hospitalizations are creeping up, doubling in the last three weeks. Around Albany, less than 10 percent of intensive care beds are available. One of the worst spots — not just in the state but the nation — is Central New York, where the hospitalization rate is twice that of state as a whole. New York City, the Hudson Valley and Long Island have been fairly stable; it’s unclear why, although it’s worth noting that vaccination rates are higher there. There may simply be a lag in the spread of the virus’ new omicron variants.

All this raises the question of whether New York could be doing more to stop this apparent surge. To her credit, Gov. Kathy Hochul has extended a state of emergency that includes mask requirements for buses, subways and train stations. But we’re not hearing talk of a potential return to the kinds of measures — like mask mandates in businesses and schools — that helped stem the spread of the virus.

We understand the reluctance to talk about renewed mask, social distancing and vaccine mandates in a year in which all state legislative seats and statewide offices, including governor, are up for grabs in the November election. But we’d note that for all the attention vocal critics of mandates have gotten, a recent Associated Press-NORC poll found that 56 percent of Americans want to keep mask requirements on planes and other shared transportation, while just 24 percent are opposed and another 20 percent don’t care one way or the other.

In short, the majority of the public is still well aware that COVID -19 hasn’t gone away, and most people are still receptive to steps to fight it.

Ms. Hochul and other leaders should not squander that consensus. They should redouble the push to persuade people to get vaccinated and boosted, and not be afraid to risk the inevitable political potshots that come with making tough but necessary choices to protect public health.