Introduction to the Pandemic
Five years after COVID-19 shut down activities all over the world, medical historians sometimes struggle to place the pandemic in context. What, they are asking, should this ongoing viral threat be compared to? Is COVID like the 1918 flu, terrifying when it was raging but soon relegated to the status of a long-ago nightmare? Is it like polio, vanquished but leaving in its wake an injured but mostly unseen group of people who suffer long-term health consequences? Or is it unique in the way it has spawned a widespread rejection of public health advice and science itself, attitudes that some fear may come to haunt the nation when the next major illness arises?
Comparison to Historical Pandemics
Some historians say it is all of the above, which makes COVID stand out in the annals of pandemics. In many ways, historians say, the COVID pandemic — which the World Health Organization declared on March 11, 2020 — reminds them of the 1918 flu. Both were terrifying, killing substantial percentages of the population, unlike, say, polio or Ebola or HIV, terrible as those illnesses were. The 1918 flu killed 675,000 people out of a U.S. population of 103 million, or 65 out of every 10,000. COVID has so far killed about 1,135,000 Americans out of a population of 331.5 million, or 34 out of every 10,000.
The Impact on Daily Life
Both pandemics dominated the news every day while they raged. And both were relegated to the back of most people’s minds as the numbers of infections and deaths fell. J. Alexander Navarro, a medical historian at the University of Michigan, said that in the fall of 1918, when the nation was in the throes of the deadliest wave of the 1918 flu, “newspapers were chock-full of stories about influenza, detailing daily case tallies, death tolls, edicts and recommendations issued by officials.” During the next year, the virus receded. And so did the nation’s attention. There were no memorials for flu victims, no annual days of remembrance. “The nation simply moved on,” Navarro said.
Lasting Effects of the Pandemic
Much the same thing happened with COVID, historians say, although it took longer for the virus’s harshest effects to recede. Most people live as if the threat is gone, with deaths a tiny fraction of what they once were. In the week of Feb. 15, 273 Americans died of COVID. In the last week of 2021, 10,476 Americans died from COVID. Interest in the COVID vaccine has plummeted, too. Now just “a measly 23% of adults” have gotten the updated vaccine, Navarro noted. Remnants of COVID remain — lasting financial effects, lags in educational achievement, casual dress, Zoom meetings, a desire to work from home. But few think of COVID as they go about their daily lives.
Parallels with Other Pandemics
But some, like those suffering from long COVID, can’t forget. In that sense, historians see parallels with other pandemics that, unlike the 1918 flu, left a number of people who were permanently affected. People who contracted paralytic polio in the 1950s described themselves as “the dinosaurs,” reminders of the time before the vaccine, when the virus was killing or paralyzing children. Every pandemic has its dinosaurs, historians say. They are the Zika babies living with microcephaly. They are the people, often at the margins of society, who develop AIDS. They are the people who contract tuberculosis.
Changes in Public Health Attitudes
One aspect of the COVID pandemic, though, is still with the nation, and seems to be part of a new reality: It has markedly changed attitudes toward public health. Kyle Harper, a historian at the University of Oklahoma, said he would give the biomedical response to COVID an A-plus. “The rollout of vaccines was incredible,” he said. But, he said, “I would give the social response a C-minus.” Few medical experts, he said, expected so much resistance to measures like masks, quarantines, social distancing and — when they became available — vaccines and vaccine mandates. With COVID, he said, “compared to other pandemics, the amount of pushback to standard public health practices was remarkable.”
Conclusion
In conclusion, the COVID-19 pandemic has left an indelible mark on the world, with its impact still being felt today. While it shares some similarities with past pandemics, such as the 1918 flu, it has also introduced new challenges, including widespread rejection of public health advice and science. As the world moves forward, it is essential to learn from the past and work towards rebuilding trust in public health measures to prepare for future pandemics.
Originally Published: March 10, 2025 at 8:03 PM EDT
FAQs
Q: What makes the COVID-19 pandemic unique compared to other pandemics?
A: The COVID-19 pandemic is unique in its widespread rejection of public health advice and science, as well as its long-term effects on certain individuals, such as those suffering from long COVID.
Q: How does the COVID-19 pandemic compare to the 1918 flu pandemic?
A: Both pandemics were terrifying and killed substantial percentages of the population, but the 1918 flu was eventually relegated to the back of people’s minds, while COVID-19 has left a lasting impact on daily life and public health attitudes.
Q: What can be learned from the COVID-19 pandemic?
A: The pandemic has taught us the importance of rebuilding trust in public health measures and preparing for future pandemics by learning from the past and addressing the challenges introduced by COVID-19.
