IMO
Yes, we need a new normal. Why? Because SARS CoV2 is not going away. And when it finally does affect every last remaining human, there will be SARS 3... then SARS 4...
SARS and MERS were like the practice outbreaks. It could have been our (global) opportunity to get public health (i.e. public will ) prepared. Ramp up Public Health offices. Coordinate research efforts (like SEPI). Remove the profit and need for bottom line from science research. [soapbox] Hopefully COVID19 teaches us what is really important to us as humans and as a species.
Lasting, durable, sterilizing immunity to coronaviruses would be the exception, i.e. not demonstrated yet. Could very well be that no vaccine will be soon developed that protects humans from COVID19. Or maybe from bad disease. Measles vaccine took 5y to develop. Polio almost 50. Neither measles or polio are coronaviruses.
Then the other hope is treatment. Maybe a mix of anti-virals, immunosuppressants, and good hospital care. SARS-CoV2 is a “clever” virus and has particular features that make it tricky to treat from a virologic perspective. My guess is a successful regimen is going to take very particular timing for the different drugs for the optimal effect, and will depend on patients doing the right thing and presenting at the right time.
Meanwhile you have Americans jumping to get back together! And share things like restaurant door handles, gym equipment, and bannisters. Just cause some elected official says go back and mingle, doesn’t mean the virus goes into hiding.
So what does that mean as a species? This could be Darwinian theory played out in real time. Survival of the fittest. The smartest. The luckiest who was the smartest who got the richest and could best protect self and family. The one who stayed lean and mean, who could read the events and stocked up enough in advance, not just TP, but enough protein, ingredients for healthy meals, educational adv. for their offspring.
The biggest problem with SARS-CoV2 is not that it kills people, but that it kills obese people AND people who have health problems. And American citizens are exactly that. Our case report series will be different and have different stats than those from China, Italia, etc because of our lifestyle.
Maybe the new normal should be that we spend 2T on public heath and preventative health. What if we made it a goal to get rid of diabetes and obesity? REALLY push public health, so that people not just have easy cheap access to important meds, but all the other things so that they didn’t have to take meds. Fitness built into our daily lives. Heavily tax those things, like fast foods and smoking etc , that ultimately lead to the poor health that leads us to have to shut down our economy to protect the unhealthy. To make our citizens and our public health as robust as possible. So that when a new novel virus came to attack our species, we will fare better, and not have to debate bailing out cruise lines. [end soapbox]