Come on people, get vaccinated.
Do it for yourself, do it for the elderly, and do it for the immunocompromised.
We鈥檙e in the midst of a pandemic. By definition, that means the coronavirus has spread across the world.
B.C.鈥檚 infection rate, like others around the world, has taken off since the Omicron variant began to spread. By Boxing Day, the number of COVID-19 cases in Canada had reached the two million mark. And that鈥檚 only counting the reported cases.
Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry advises anyone with COVID symptoms to assume they are infected and to stay home.
The message is clear: this is a contagious disease that is killing people.
The coronavirus started to spread in January 2020. In March of that year, the World Health Organization declared the virus a pandemic. By May 28, the virus, which started in China, had killed more than 100,000 Americans.
Worldwide, more than 5.4 million people have died from the coronavirus since January 2020, according to the Worldometer.
We鈥檝e seen countries such as Italy and Holland in lockdown mode. Perhaps Canada and the U.S. need to follow suit. As time marches on, this tactic appears to be the only way we鈥檙e going to curb the virus.
Social distancing, proof of vaccination and other restrictions are there to serve the greater good. We wear masks, and we receive shots in the arm, to protect ourselves and each other. It鈥檚 not about rights and freedoms, it鈥檚 about health and safety.
The doubters claim that masks don鈥檛 work and that COVID restrictions are overblown. Some even believe the virus is a hoax.
But the aforementioned numbers don鈥檛 lie.
Some people are wary of vaccines. Fair enough. However, experts at medical institutions such as John Hopkins Medicine say that all coronavirus vaccines are safe, and help prevent serious or fatal cases of COVID-19. They have also said the risk of side effects is small. There have, for instance, been some rare instances of blood clotting and myocarditis, but the experts have determined that the benefits of vaccines outweigh the risks.
So let鈥檚 all do our bit. Wear a mask, get vaccinated, and help bring this pandemic to an end.
reporter@comoxvalleyrecord.com
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