Viewpoints: Antiviral Pills Being Tested To Treat Covid; Should Religious Exemptions Be Eliminated?

Bloomberg: Is The Next Covid Game Changer A Pill? 
Vaccines have been game changers in the fight against Covid-19, offering effective protection against even highly contagious and pathogenic strains such as the delta variant. But with many in the world still unvaccinated and cases on the rise – including among the vaccinated – it’s becoming clear we’ll need more than shots to keep the virus at bay. Here, Sam Fazeli, a Bloomberg Opinion contributor who covers the pharmaceutical industry for Bloomberg Intelligence, answers questions on the next big potential breakthrough in Covid treatments: anti-viral pills under development by Merck & Co. and other drugmakers. The conversation has been edited and condensed. (Sam Fazeli, 7/22)

Los Angeles Times: Don't Exempt Religious Objectors From Vaccination Mandates
Policies requiring vaccination against COVID-19 need not include, and should not include, exceptions for those who have religious objections to vaccinations. Many universities, including the University of California, are requiring vaccination for all students, staff and faculty returning to campus. Many employers, public and private, are doing so as well. These policies are essential to protect public health. The virulent Delta variant of the coronavirus has made it imperative to ensure vaccination of as many people as possible. (Erwin Chemerinsky, 7/23)

The New York Times: Mask And Lockdown Mandates Can’t Beat Covid-19. Only Vaccines Can
It’s not often that I say this as a conservative, but Mayor Bill de Blasio is absolutely correct to reject calls for a renewed indoor mask mandate and to refuse to consider renewed lockdowns in New York City in light of the emergence of the Delta variant. “A mask doesn’t arrest the progress of the variant,” Mr. de Blasio said, explaining how following the science led him to be reluctant to reinstitute the mandate this week. “Vaccination does.” This doesn’t hold true just for New York City: reinstituting mask mandates and lockdowns is a mistake nationwide as well. (Bethany Mandel, 7/23)

The Atlantic: Are Anti-Vaxxers To Blame For The Pandemic's Resurgence? 
In the United States, this pandemic could’ve been over by now, and certainly would’ve been by Labor Day. If the pace of vaccination through the summer had been anything like the pace in April and May, the country would be nearing herd immunity. With most adults immunized, new and more infectious coronavirus variants would have nowhere to spread. Life could return nearly to normal. (David Frum, 7/23)

The Star Tribune: A Welcome Vaccine Push From GOP, Fox 
Nearly a year and a half into the most serious pandemic in modern times, a growing number of conservative leaders are at long last urging followers to get vaccinated against COVID-19. Among the most notable is Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who startled many with his open endorsement of the vaccines at a news conference this week. "Those shots need to get in everybody's arm as rapidly as possible, or we're going to be back in the situation in the fall that we don't yearn for, that we went through last year," he told reporters. "I want to encourage everybody to do that and to ignore all of these other voices that are giving demonstrably bad advice." (7/22)

USA Today: Require Vaccination Proof For Air Travel To Curb COVID, Boost Immunity
America is at a COVID-19 crossroads. For the first time since the highly effective vaccines became widely available in the spring, the new case rate is back on the rise due to the spread of the more contagious delta variant and the stalled effort to vaccinate people in many parts of the country. According to medical experts, reaching herd immunity will require that 70% to 90% of the U.S. population be fully vaccinated. But despite having enough vaccines available to inoculate every eligible American age 12 and up, just under 50% of the U.S. population is fully vaccinated. (Paul Weinstein Jr. and Will Marshall, 7/23)

The Washington Post: We Have The Tools To End This Pandemic. Instead, We’re Choosing To Live With It
There is one striking thing that distinguishes this pandemic from all previous ones in history — the speed with which humankind came up with a vaccine. It is unprecedented and still breathtaking that, within months of the arrival of a novel coronavirus, scientists were able to develop and test several vaccines that proved to be highly effective at preventing serious illness. But what science has given, politics seems to be taking away. Despite having ample supplies of the vaccine, the United States is stuck with roughly 60 percent of the adult population fully vaccinated, ensuring that the pandemic will linger, perhaps forever. Given the tools to end this tragedy, we are choosing to live with it. (Fareed Zakaria, 7/22)

The Baltimore Sun: Extreme Right Meets The Virus, And A Death In The Family Results 
It can be jarring the first time you see it — an angry, sexist meme about House Speaker Nancy Pelosi posted on the Facebook page of one of your favorite relatives, an affable and kindhearted soul you always considered politically moderate with a slight lean to the right. Even more jarring: Discovering that a cousin you once admired hates and rejects the COVID-19 vaccinations championed by President Joe Biden. (Dan Rodricks, 7/22)