A pandemic is a disease that affects a large number of people over multiple countries. I wonder what is the metric defining a large number of people, thus determining a disease is epidemic versus just a day to day illness.

As more and more people around the world become vaccinated against the current covid pandemic, what is the point it becomes just another disease and extraordinary restrictions currently in place can be lifted?

Caution is Prudent

Personally I agree guarding against illness by cleanliness, distancing, masks, testing etc are all practices that make sense.  They  do mitigate (but not remove) the possibility of us catching a disease.

However, the question is what level of risk mitigation is appropriate when the likelihood and impact of the risk is considered.  Before the covid pandemic the practices most followed to prevent catching some illness were generally far less than current.

The level of caution around illness prevention has risen greatly over the last tow years.  This can be attributed to the increased risk of becoming ill (covid is very communicable) and the impact (covid can lead to death).

Acceptable Risk

A key question for me, of late, is what is the measure that will allow us to declare the temporary risk mitigation restrictions of the last two years no longer needed by society as a whole.

The rate of transmission and the severity of covid cases would seem to me to be reasonable measures.  The tricky part is what the exact metric would be, surely not  zero transmission and hospitalization, but if not that definitive than what?

My concern is not enough thought has been given to this measure or clear communication of the goal we seek.  Without drawing a bar we could just continue in pandemc mode for years or decades.  Does this make sense?