Our nation is marking the start of the third year living with COVID-19.

For most, COVID-19 has been a painful and dramatic adjustment in our daily lives, including our work, school, social and religious routines and interactions. We have lived behind masks and remained closer to home in an effort to remain healthy and safe.

More than two years in, many of us have lost family members and friends to the virus, which has claimed the lives of more than 960,000 Americans and more than 19,300 Virginians.

In Richmond and the counties of Henrico, Chesterfield and Hanover alone, more than 2,380 people have died of COVID-19 and its complications since the pandemic began in March 2020.

An estimated 23 millionAmericans now are living with COVID-19’s after-effects, known as “long COVID,” which, according to experts, can impact the lungs, heart, brain, neurological and digestive systems and possibly all of the above. Medical studies are being conducted on long COVID at research institutions across the country, including VCU Health System.

We urge people who have lingering symptoms from a COVID-19 infection to participate in these clinical studies to help expand the body of knowledge about this disease and treatment options for those who currently are impacted and for those to come.

We must remain vigilant against COVID-19 and the array of variants health officials are seeing now in parts of Europe and China that are expected to infiltrate the United States in the next few months. The unvaccinated of all ages continue to be at greatest risk of contracting the virus, as well as people who are age 65 and older and those who are immunocompromised or who have underlying health conditions.

Officials at Pfizer and Moderna are discussing the possibility of a second booster — or a fourth shot of the vaccine — to give many people in those categories greater protection.

We all long for the day when life can return to normal, or at least closer to what it was before COVID-19 struck in March 2020.

While mask mandates have fallen to political whim and those who equate going maskless as a freedom statement, we encourage people to continue to wear masks in public settings and in groups even around relatives. Masks, hand washing and social distancing remain our only defense against getting sick and/or transmitting the virus to others, including our loved ones.

As we enter the third year of living with COVID-19, we are seeing some shifts on the state and local levels as free mass vaccination and testing centers shut down. Federal officials currently are exploring ways to shift costs for many of these free services to insurance companies. It is uncertain what that will mean for those who lack health insurance or those who are underinsured.

Federal officials also are pushing Congress for an additional $22.5 billion in funding to help pay for testing, treatment and enough vaccine to cover a fourth dose for all Americans.

There are many unknowns on the road ahead with COVID-19. Our hope is that our fellow Americans and Richmonders will travel it safely.