Why these pandemic habits like masks, remote work are likely here to stay

Though COVID-19 has largely disappeared from daily headlines, the pandemic continues to march quietly in the background. And it will likely continue to do so for some time as it reshapes society.

After all, some new habits and lifestyles may outlast the pandemic — from masks in public spaces to remote work.

Tennessee will likely soon count its 30,000th death related to COVID-19, according to the state Department of Health. And for the last three months, the state has also had the fifth-highest, age-adjusted fatality rate in the nation, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention figures show.

One of the nation's leading experts on infectious diseases, Dr. William Schaffner of Vanderbilt University, predicts that respiratory illnesses such as COVID will increase again this winter. There was an uptick in cases this summer that never abated, he said.

"This is a harbinger of what's to come this winter. We are among the least vaccinated states," Schaffner said. "And I'm afraid that's going to contribute to this anticipated increase in COVID hospitalizations we're going to see this winter."

Schaffner noted that this won't likely be as bad as previous winters, but that these months are always a higher risk for respiratory ailments — which is why, he added, any increase in hospitalizations due to COVID is disappointing and troublesome as a representative of disease in susceptible people.

"And, it also will put some stress on our health care system," Schaffner said. "Because, we have to remember we have influenza out there increasing; RSV is increasing. So, we're concerned about that. We're going to have some form of a triple-demic."

More than three years after the start of the pandemic, American society continues to shift.

Masking is still a thing

The pandemic made Americans familiar with seeing masses of people wearing masks for the first time in most people's living memory. Though they were hardly popular.

While mask mandates are gone from most public settings, mouth coverings to protect from illnesses aren't gone completely. And they may be with us, at least to a limited extent, for a while.

A YouGov survey of 1,500 U.S. adults conducted in September found that about 1 out of 10 respondents say they always or almost always wear a mask outside their homes. Another 14% said they do "some of the time."

The CDC still notes that wearing a quality mask offers improved (but not perfect) protection against respiratory ailments, including COVID-19.

"Like the vaccines, they are helpful, but not perfect, for sure," said Schaffner. "I would think now that, since the respiratory viruses are more active, in particular, that people who are more like to get more severe disease, and those who have people at home who are more likely to get severe disease: Put their masks on when their indoors with other people."

So is remote work

Remote working, once a rarity in corporate America, became commonplace for many during the pandemic. Offices were shuttered and many office workers became accustomed to doing business by video teleconferencing.

According to a Bureau of Labor Statistics survey in October, nearly 20% of adult U.S. workers teleworked or worked at home for pay some or all of the time. Roughly half did so all of the time, according to government figures.

Not surprisingly, the jobs with the highest rates were white-collar jobs and those involving computers. The rate of telework now is roughly double what it was according to BLS statistics. In March, the rate of telework reached more than 27%, according to government figures. Other studies found that the percentage of part- or full-time remote work may have even exceeded 50% of the workforce.

Yearly COVID vaccines likely here to say

This fall, the Food and Drug Administration approved the latest booster shots to protect against the most recent variants of COVID-19. Experts say these updated vaccines are expected to be the norm for the years to come, much like annual flu inoculations.

That's not to say that people have been eager to get them. Only 11% of Tennesseans have gotten the latest boosters. That said, nearly a third of high-risk older state residents over the age of 65 have done so. And, nearly 90% of seniors have gotten at least the first full round of vaccinations, according to CDC data.

Schaffner has been tracking an uptick an uptick in cases of COVID this month.

"Now, we Tennessee Volunteers have not volunteered very vigorously to take advantage of the updated COVID vaccine," Schaffner said.

The toll

According to the most recent report from the Tennessee Department of Health, at least 29,973 Tennesseans have likely died as a result of COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic. At least 392 state residents from the novel coronavirus have died in the last three months.

Since the start of the pandemic, Tennessee's COVID-19 overall death rate has been 350.1 per 100,000 residents. That's the ninth worst in the county. In the past three months, that rate has been 4.9 per 100,000 residents — considerably fewer but still the fifth-worst rate in the country, according to CDC data.

COVID-related hospitalizations remain far below peaks from previous years. Though Tennessee still counts several hundred cases, as of this month.

Frank Gluck is the health care reporter for The Tennessean. He can be reached at fgluck@tennessean.com. Follow him on X (formerly known as Twitter) at @FrankGluck.

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This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: COVID deaths hit 30K in Tennessee, with masks, remote work a new norm