Too much, too soon

States should take a cautious approach to reopening

The United Kingdom, one of the most highly vaccinated countries in the world, just postponed its highly anticipated reopening by at least a month — partly because of the threat posed to public health by the Delta variant, which was first identified in Maharashtra. India, however, which has just suffered through a devastating second wave partly driven by this new and more transmissible variant, does not seem to be willing to recognise that some social distancing norms must continue — even though the country is far less vaccinated than the UK. Delhi, for example, removed some movement restrictions this week.