"Some policymakers may be wary of not using case numbers as the primary metric to guide public behavior and policy. As cases become more complex, however, health departments should still monitor infection numbers, but guidance should be tied to hospitalization metrics. When rising cases do not reliably predict hospitalization surges, hitching Covid policies to cases alone is no longer effective policy — or good public health."

Monica Gandhi is an infectious disease physician and co-author of the New York Times opinion article, "Why Hospitalizations Are Now a Better Indicator of Covid’s Impact."