Take a second and think back to March 2020. Has COVID-19 affected you personally?

In the United States alone, there have been almost 27 million cases, and just over 462 thousand deaths, and these don’t include those who may have been asymptomatic or never tested. (covid.cdc.gov).

Scientists and labs across the world are rigorously studying to find ways to stop the spread of the virus and are continuing to create effective vaccines.

As of right now, vaccines have started being administered. Scientists believe these vaccines will help people build immunity to the vaccine.

But this doesn’t mean masks are no longer necessary, it means they are more important than ever. Even though new measures to protect yourself against the virus are being created and provided, the rate of transmission and deaths across the world have skyrocketed.

Wearing masks literally saves lives.

Mr. Richardson, United States Government teacher here at HHS, proudly admits that he is the oldest teacher at Hillcrest. Nearly every day when you walk into his class, he reminds his students of this and follows up with reminding students to wear their masks and keep it above their noses.

Studies show that older people are more likely to be affected by the virus in more harmful ways than younger people. Studies are also showing that, for young adults, the virus is having harmful, lasting effects, on their lungs and hearts.

COVID-19 affects each person in a different way, but it’s important to make sure you are doing your part to help prevent the spread of this virus. Some people may not react, while others may die.

There are different circumstances that limit people’s ability to wear masks.

According to cdc.gov, these are: children under the age of two years old, anyone who has trouble breathing, anyone unconscious, incapacitated.

So aside from these, please wear your mask and do you part. This pandemic will only end when people do their part and wear their masks and social distance.

“Science tells us how to stop the virus so you can believe in what you want but science isn’t going to let you down” says Richardson.