Dr. Sanjay Gupta: Simple steps for coexisting with the coronavirus

As we prepare to head into our second fall with the coronavirus, it's admittedly a strange time. On the one hand, the situation is better than last year, primarily because we have vaccines that are doing a terrific job of protecting the roughly 60% of Americans who are eligible and fully vaccinated, and to some extent, the additional 10% who have gotten their first dose.

But things are also worse, mainly because the very contagious and possibly more dangerous Delta variant currently makes up about 99% of the coronavirus in circulation in the United States. The Delta variant has caused an uptick in infections, hospitalizations and, sadly, deaths, especially in parts of the country where vaccination rates are lagging. To add to this worrying trend, serious disease requiring hospitalization is affecting younger and healthier age groups, including children.