It's time to get vaccinated

The pandemic never ended.

It is not over in Japan, where the Olympic Games are being hosted in Tokyo, as an outbreak of COVID-19 infections is occurring.

It is not over in the United States, where the seven-day average of new COVID-19 infections has quadrupled between July 1 and July 24. The pandemic is certainly not over in Wyoming, where the highly-contagious Delta variation of the COVID-19 coronavirus is the most prevalent strain.

Wyoming won’t ever shut down as it did last year -- the process was hijacked by politicians and their supporters who believe in the concept of freedom so much, they tout freedom from responsibility as a desirable goal. Sure, elected officials can not make the call, but who seriously thinks a politician would support an unpopular decision that would jeopardize their re-election chances? Call me jaded, but I don’t see it happening.

There is something people can do to protect themselves and their families. Get vaccinated. According to the Wyoming Department of Health, as of July 19, 12,423 residents have been vaccinated. This accounts for 29.37% of the county’s population. In what’s being dubbed as a “pandemic of the unvaccinated,” 70% of the county’s population is at risk of contracting COVID-19. Combine that with the biggest event of the summer in the Sweetwater County Fair starting this weekend and massive crowds wanting a good time, we may be looking at a super spreader event that passes COVID-19 well beyond the gatherings at the Sweetwater County Events Complex.

Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County and Sweetwater County Public Health have made it easy to receive any vaccine. The hospital has hosted drive-though vaccination clinics during the past two Wednesdays and scheduling a vaccination appointment is as easy as calling 307-922-5390.

There are very few reasons not to get vaccinated and using politics as a pillar of reasoning will only end badly. The vaccines are safe and residents should be much more willing to be vaccinated than they have so far.

There is only one real way out of this pandemic and it isn’t through the political process.

Get vaccinated.