From the   New York Times   this morning explaining the death of 84-year old Colin Powell, who had underlying medical conditions and passed away from COVID-19: Further: For older people with a medical condition, the vaccines both sharply reduce the dangers of Covid and still leave Covid as a meaningful threat, one that arguably justifies a different approach to day-to-day life. Spending time indoors with an unmasked, untested grandchild or eating a meal inside a restaurant may not be worth the risk, at least until case counts have fallen to low levels. The question is when will it get safe enough for the elderly to travel, go out to dinner and so on? The most effective way to reduce caseloads is to continue raising the country’s vaccination rate, through   workplace mandates   and other measures. Vaccinating children under 12 can also   save the lives of older people . Cases in the U.S. have already fallen 50 percent since Sept 1. If the declines continue — and can be maintained — the