Dr. McCormick brought up that he had to leave his research in order to help with the pandemic. With the most recent sightings of the "Murder" Hornets, everything happening in U.S. makes myself at least feel like there will be no end this bad news. So what if something more sinister than SARS-CoV-2 appears and researchers stop abruptly? Would we focus our attention on SARS-CoV-2 and this new obstacle equally? Or do we wait to see what develops (see how we can efficiently handle whatever may come up)?
Remember that "bad" news get more play than "good" news. It's unfortunate but true. I think that different researchers will keep focussing on their specialty area.
Dr. McCormick's area is public health; as a physician he also has an obligation to help patients. I hope he can get back to his research soon.