Vaccine eligibility moves to 16 and older in the state of Ohio starting next week. With the shots opening up to everyone who wants one soon, a light at the end of a dark tunnel may be becoming clearer.
But officials warn that a false sense of security may lead to more spread of COVID-19.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention urge people to only travel when necessary and suggest not scheduling any spring break trips.
It’s a problem very apparent in Miami Beach, where nightly curfews are being defied.
Columbus airports are seeing more travelers between March 4-14 compared to February numbers. John Glenn Columbus International Airport and Rickenbacker International Airport saw on average 6,103 passengers departed daily during the start of spring break travel, which is up about 1,870 more people on average over February, according to a spokesperson.
Data released from Columbus Airports show volume is down 46% compared to pre-pandemic levels.
Top destinations won’t be available for months, but the initial numbers from February and March show the most popular places to go are leisure destinations, including Florida.
TSA screened more than 1.5 million Americans on Sunday alone at airports across the nation, which is almost 1 million more people than the same day last year. In 2019, 2,227,181 travelers were screened on March 21 two years ago.
“There’s only a certain amount of time where people can stay in this monotonous routine and not feel kind of trapped,” said Dr. Kira Bailey, an Assistant Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience at Ohio Wesleyan University. “I think there is real sincere hope we are going to get to a point where most people are vaccinated and we have something close to herd immunity eventually, but I don’t think we are there yet. And I think people need to remember that.”
Dr. Bailey says what we’re are feeling is a normal human reaction.
“I know a lot of people are experiencing brain fog. Basically, it is impacting our memory and our ability to pay attention because we have been really in these monotonous routines for a very long time. And your brain wants to seek novelty and newness and excitement,” said Bailey. “Being cooped up with just a few other people all this time is definitely having an effect on how we are feeling. I think people are just tired of feeling that way.”
She suggests changing your schedule or meeting up with people outside with masks to stay safe until herd immunity can be reached.