Progress amid a pandemic

Sometimes we measure progress a day at a time. But sometimes we need to take a wider view. When it comes to the pandemic, it has been a long, challenging year. One year ago we had barely heard of Covid-19, and had little clue it would suddenly dominate our lives in many ways. But we should take stock of how far we have come in that time. Not only has an effective vaccine been produced in record time, we are now seeing improvement in getting people inoculated. Just look at the headlines from recent days. Wisconsin has now administered more than a million doses of the vaccine. Firefighters, police, long-term care residents and staff have gotten their shots. Local clinics are finally getting enough of the vaccine after initial delays. Pharmacies say they are receiving twice as many doses as they did last week. Soon, the federal government may approve a one-dose shot. Community vaccination sites are planned in La Crosse and elsewhere. Starting Monday, Wisconsin teachers will be moved to the front of the line for their dose. Local numbers of new cases have been on the decline, now in the single digits per day. We are not out of the woods yet. But real progress has been made and that is a shot in the arm as we try to get back to what was like before we ever heard the term coronavirus.