About

We are a group of scientists and pediatric, infectious disease, emergency, mental health, and ICU doctors concerned that COVID-19 mitigation measures for children are doing more harm than good. Health must be viewed holistically— yet school policymakers have narrowly defined “safety” as the mere absence of COVID, putting children into a loop of mitigation measures that are uncoupled from actual risk. After two years of living with one disruption after another, the toll on children’s mental and physical health is increasingly evident and alarming. To protect them, an urgent return to fully normal life and schooling is needed.

We continue to advocate for our kids' overall well-being, most recently with our Open Letter to White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator Dr. Ashish Jha and CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky. You can co-sign the letter here.

We also have an advocacy toolkit to support policy change in elementary and secondary schools. We’ve distilled the raw data so that parents, students, and school decision makers at all levels can understand not just COVID-19, but the harms of two years of pandemic life to children’s health and wellbeing. We also created a distinct toolkit focused on the unique needs of pre-school age children.

As scientists and physicians, our goal is to provide accurate data and nuanced guidance—to help people frame decisions and balance risk—not to make decisions for you.

The Urgency of Normal is an all-volunteer effort, with no funding received from any source.