When will the pandemic end? COVID-19 is here to stay, but doctors hope it shifts to more mild infection

As coronavirus cases skyrocket to unprecedented heights amid the omicron surge, infectious disease experts say they’re hopeful the pandemic will start to shift to an endemic phase when COVID-19 is more mild and doesn’t overwhelm hospitals.

COVID-19 is certainly not going anywhere, doctors told the Herald, but the virus should eventually become milder — like the yearly flu influenza and other pathogens.

The intense spike of cases amid this omicron wave will help lead to a significant amount of natural immunity, adding to vaccine immunity across the U.S. and in many countries, said Amesh Adalja, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins University Center for Health Security.

“That hybrid immunity will be something that provides resilience in the population,” he said. “Yes, we will see variants and cases will occur, but it should be tamer as the population becomes more immune to it.

“It should be less likely to land someone in the hospital,” he said.

The highly contagious delta variant caused a higher rate of severe cases than the extraordinarily contagious omicron variant. Omicron has since taken over in the last several weeks, spreading like wildfire, but the rate of hospitalizations has been lower.

The hope is that COVID-19 shifts to a more routine and milder upper respiratory tract infection.

“With the caveat that we don’t know if there will be new variants that will be resistant to vaccine or natural immunity, the hope is that with so many people being infected that we will build up more immunity,” said Boston University epidemiology Professor Matthew Fox.

“We won’t reach the herd immunity we were all hoping for last year, but the hope is that this slows things down such that it becomes more of a seasonal issue like influenza and we can have a yearly vaccine booster if needed,” he said.

The quick-moving omicron wave should start to come down in the next few weeks.

The rate of hospitalizations has been lower, but hospitals are still packed to the brim as the massive number of infections has led to a large increase in COVID-19 patients. Many hospital workers are also on the sidelines because of COVID-19, sparking major staffing shortages.

“If we are talking about when things can go back to a more normal lifestyle, I think when we no longer see waves that lead to hospitals filling up,” Fox said. “Once that happens, I think people will feel more comfortable with going back to a more business as usual lifestyle.”