ontrol projected new U.S. COVID cases would decline in November. Instead nationally the cases have surged about 30 percent.

It is a disappointing development. Almost two years after COVID began spreading, it is still here. It didn’t go away in the spring of 2020 like many local people expected. It is again creating anxiety as Americans gather for the holidays. While many people are gathering today for the traditional family Thanksgiving, others are staying home.

The virus appears to be unpredictable. Last winter the number of cases nationally peaked in early January and plummeted about...