For many of us, things have returned to a sense of normalcy since the onset of the pandemic in 2020. Big box stores are open late hours again. Concerts and theater shows have returned to event listings. Our schools, churches and restaurants are operating as they have, for the most part, rebuilding a sense of community that was lost when we were all asked to stay indoors, consider ordering our groceries from an app and watch as children became part of an educational experiment called “virtual learning.”

But the new normal isn’t the old normal. The SARS-CoV-2 virus is still with us. An NBC news article from Aug. 9 asked, “Is this the biggest Covid summer wave ever?”

“If you just talk about infections, this is probably going to end up becoming the largest summer wave we’ve had,” Dr. Ashish Jha, dean of the Brown University School of Public Health and former White House COVID-19 response coordinator said in the article. “It’s still not as big as the winter waves, but it is starting to get close.”

If you’re among the older population, unvaccinated or immunocompromised, the number of infections should be a concern. For people in these groups, a bout with COVID-19 could have serious consequences, far beyond missing a few days of work or missing a weekend getaway with friends. 

Fortunately, fewer people are infected with severe forms of the virus these days and there are treatment options. Yet, there also is still the potential for serious consequences after becoming infected, such as Long COVID, a chronic condition the CDC describes as “a wide range of ongoing symptoms and conditions that can last weeks, months, or even years.”

Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, was interviewed by TIME magazine earlier this year. He described the era that we’re living in, with regard to the jeopardy that some people face in their daily lives compared to others who have “stopped paying attention” to the disease to living in separate timelines.

“Is the pandemic over for some people earlier than it is for others?” Osterholm asked in the March article. “That doesn’t seem to make sense. That’s kind of like saying that there’s two different temperatures in Minneapolis in one night.”

It may not make sense, but that’s where we are. Finding a way to reconcile the experiences of those who have resumed pre-pandemic routines with those who still face significant health risks is a difficult challenge. We can start to address it by keeping up with safety measures and showing empathy for those who are still struggling.

The pandemic has impacted us unequally, but a united response to its effects could bring us together.