1) Whether the variant is more transmissible than the current, prevalent Delta strain?
2) Does it cause more severe disease?
3) Will it render our immune defenses — from vaccines and prior infections — less effective (a phenomenon known as immune escape)?
[The above from today's NY Times]
I predict the answer to all three questions will be "yes."
Will we shut down? No. We will continue to march forward, navigating the minefield on advice of our public health experts.