Now that this is (almost) over

[Decoy of Fenris]

7. In my opinion, millions have yet to die in the US alone.

From my understanding of what I've been reading and the biologists I know, this is an epoch-level virus, one that by all rights should alter how we live entirely. It will linger, continue to mutate, and will be a constant, lingering threat; no 'herd immunity', no 'vaccines', only therapeutic measures. The already-infected can be infected again. 80% of infected are asymptomatic and carry the disease everywhere without knowing. Multiple waves of deaths every year, mostly targeted to population centers and the generally disadvantaged areas, wiping out hundreds or thousands across the country every season. It could theoretically be worse than that.

I can't say I've heard many projections where the end result would be 'better' than what already seems to be the worst-case scenario of hundreds of thousands dying every year from this. One biologist I know insists that Social Distancing must become the 'norm', if not keeping limited lockdowns in place, if we want to have any chance of beating this with a lower body count. Otherwise... Millions? Hundreds of millions? Dead over a few decades.