First identified in Botswana and South Africa in November, the Omicron variant of the novel coronavirus has surged around the world over the past two months and now accounts for 99.9% of new infections in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The pandemic continues to play a recurring role in people’s lives, and Omicron poses new risks toward able-bodied and disabled people in the new year.

The global pandemic continues to play a recurring role in many people’s lives even as things that are thought to be “normal” are reimplemented like in-seat learning and less preventative measures according to “As Life Begins To Return To Normal, Psychologists Say Expect Anxiety” by National Public Radio.  Throughout the interview Vaile Wright, senior doctor of health care innovation at the American Psychology Association emphasizes the level of uncertainty in place as the country reopens. The role of the variants and vaccines are “unclear” in regards to the future of the pandemic according to Wright.