History tells us the end of a deadly outbreak isn’t just about medical data – it’s about political and social changes too, says historian Erica Charters
and continued individual health measures suggest the epidemic is nowhere near its end?
Analysing past epidemics shows us that actual endings are long, drawn-out and contested. Societies must grapple not just with the medical realities of the disease, harms and treatments, but the political and economic fallout from emergency measures, and disputes over who has the authority to declare an end and what should be measured to guide this process.
As a result, the end process is when different forms of authority negotiate and compete with one another, often debating fundamental social, economic and political priorities as much as medical data. Even in the face of persistent circulation of a disease , events such ascan redirect public alarm and political resources to other crises, changing what local authorities and local communities deem “normal, expected, or locally acceptable” levels of disease.
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