30. Fear and Fatigue Shape Our Response to Delta w/ Müge Çevik & Shira Doron

Follow the Science

Just when Americans were getting back to normal life, a new variant is leading some public health officials to call for a return to distancing, masks and fear. How will the new, more transmissible variant change the future now that around half the population is vaccinated? Some clues come from the UK, where my first guest, Müge Çevik, works as an infectious disease doctor. She said the vaccines are still working despite the fact that Delta has been dominant in the UK for a while. Hospitals this time around aren’t becoming overwhelmed even as cases climb.

My second guest, Shira Doron, is an epidemiologist at Tufts Medical Center. She says that while Delta is easier to transmit, she sees no reason for panic or a return to universal masking in regions of the US where the vaccination rate is high.

“Follow the Science" is produced, written, and hosted by Faye Flam, with funding by the Society for Professional Journalists. Today’s episode was edited by Seth Gliksman with music by Kyle Imperatore. If you’d like to hear more "Follow the Science," please like, follow, and subscribe!