1918
With no antiviral drugs to treat the virus & no antibiotics to treat related infections, the U.S. experienced several more waves of influenza as soldiers returned from overseas. The pandemic ended in the summer of 1919 when enough of the population had developed immunity. It came at the cost of 675,000 lives in the U.S., almost 8,000 in Colorado.
2020
The commitment of students and Coloradans during the lockdown helped significantly slow the rate of infection, keeping medical facilities from being overwhelmed in the first wave. The story of COVID-19 is not over. We continue to live, study, and work with social distancing and mask regulations for the safety of our communities as a vaccine begins to become available.
Post-2020 Update
Vaccines are now readily available, and access to the vaccine can be found on the State of Colorado's website: https://covid19.colorado.gov/vaccine
UNC's retired mascot, Gunther the Bear, wearing a mask