Magnificent News: Coronavirus Updates: You had covid-19. You should still get vaccinated.

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Important developments in the pandemic.

By Ben Guarino
with Lindsey Bever

The Post's coronavirus coverage linked in this newsletter is free to access from this email.

The latest

On Friday, something happened in the United States that hadn't occurred for the 11 previous months: The seven-day average of new coronavirus cases fell below 30,000, a sign that the pandemic is improving in most U.S. areas. This is a very encouraging sign, but the pandemic's not over. Spread is still high in certain places such as parts of the Pacific Northwest and the Deep South. One infectious-disease modeler told The Washington Post the future of the outbreak depends on whether unprotected Americans get immunized, which would help limit a fall or winter resurgence of the virus.

"I'm sure that we can control it," Anthony S. Fauci, the nation's top infectious-disease doctor, told The Post. "Somewhere between control and elimination is where we're going to wind up."

Las Vegas is springing back to life in a fittingly high-stakes fashion. In early June, the city will host a concrete convention, the first in-person trade show held since the pandemic began with the potential to draw tens of thousands of attendees. Vaccination is not mandatory, nor are masks. It will be a test case closely watched by the convention industry, with the potential to be a revival – or major setback – for large-scale events.

Bumble, Hinge, Match.com, OkCupid, Tinder and four other dating sites have teamed up with the Biden administration to allow users to demonstrate they've been vaccinated. When announcing the program, White House senior adviser Andy Slavitt joked to reporters that vaccination is the "one thing that makes us all more attractive." But online daters and dating experts aren't sure whether this plan will be persuasive.

And if a prospective date – or employer – asks you about your vaccination status, the inquirer has not violated HIPAA. This often misunderstood law protects patients by prohibiting companies in the medical industry from sharing health information. HIPAA does not shield businesses, or friends and family, from asking whether you've been immunized.

Masks are no longer required inside D.C. businesses for people who are fully vaccinated. That was one of the last restrictions to relax, making this D.C.'s first weekend in more than a year without major precautions in place. Faces inside stores were a mix of covered and bare – some people wore no masks at all, some wore masks on their chins and others continued to wear masks, even if their immunized status meant they didn't have to.

Outside of those who are participating in clinical trials, children under 12 haven't had access to a vaccine – leaving parents unsure over what to do about masks. The former commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, Scott Gottlieb, said that masks might not be needed for kids in many outdoor situations this summer, as he told CBS's "Face the Nation" yesterday. "Wearing masks is difficult in the summertime when it's hot, and I don't think that the risk merits that," Gottlieb said. In classrooms, though, wearing masks continues to be reasonable, he said.

Other important news

Women who now go out maskless dread the return of men who say, "Smile!"

Hundreds of bodies have been discovered in India's Ganges river, and it's not clear where the bodies came from or how many of the dead had covid-19.

New dog owners are struggling to train inexperienced pets to be around other animals and people as social distancing rules relax.

Guide to the pandemic

Track confirmed cases, hospitalizations and deaths in the U.S. and the spread around the world.

U.S. vaccine distribution and delivery, tracked by state.

Guides: Finding vaccine appointments | Vaccines | Variants | Masks

Follow updates about the pandemic from Post reporters across the globe.

Submit a question and we may answer it in a future story or newsletter.

Your questions, answered

"My wife declines to be vaccinated because, among other reasons, she and I had covid-19 in December, so she says she's immune that way. Is she right? Should I not be concerned?" — John in Maine

There is some truth to that — like most viruses, most people who have had covid-19 will indeed generate antibodies against the coronavirus. The problem is that because the coronavirus is so new to all of us, scientists are still discovering what level of antibodies is needed to have protective immunity and how long that immunity will last.

It's not a clear-cut answer, because an individual's antibody levels and the rate at which they will wane will likely depend on a number of factors. Current research shows that most people who had the virus retained a robust immune response for at least eight months. There is speculation that natural immunity could last quite a bit longer, but scientists simply can't say for certain — yet.

David Topham, a professor of microbiology and immunology at the University of Rochester, told The Post in March that research also shows that people who had more severe cases developed a stronger immune reaction than those with milder ones. So, for starters, you and your wife's natural immunity may partly depend on how sick each one of you got back in December.

All of that is a long-winded way of saying, yes, you could probably assume you and your wife developed antibodies against the coronavirus, but, no, you can't be completely certain those antibodies will protect you both against reinfection, even though reinfections are pretty rare. Because of that and because many health experts now believe that the coronavirus is going to become an endemic disease that we will have to manage moving forward, federal health authorities say people should be vaccinated regardless of whether they've had the virus.

The uncertainty is hard. That's why this better-safe-than-sorry approach seems to make sense.