Published: 5/11/2021 4:16:52 PM The harms caused by the response to COVID-19 are now worse than harm from the virus. More and more people across the country and many more across the world are coming to that conclusion. Locally, however, a discussion is lacking about the risk-reward calculation or how to make a determination of when/if the emergency can be considered over. At the beginning of the crisis, the Northampton Board of Health erred on the side of caution and declared a state of emergency on March 20, 2020, granting its director authority to act unilaterally, whereby she ordered numerous restrictions and orders governing social and economic activity. The state of emergency remains in place to this day, along with many of its attendant restrictions.