Syag: Nowhere in my post did I reference anything about”frum people going to shul” nor is that the only issue. I referenced a “lockdown” such as imposed previously which applied across the board to concerts, soccer games, and large gatherings of any type, NOT just focused on shuls. I personally plan to daven in person this year (whether outdoors or indoors) given that I have been vaccinated and will be wearing a mask along with all the others (except the baal tefilah). However, we live in an area where fortunately, the level of infection and community spread has been VERY low. Our shul also has the ability to set up for large seating outside with some modest spacing if the weather permits. Given the recent numbers in EY, they may have to consider more extreme measure before things get out of control. Politicians at this point seem to be reluctant to act quickly and decisively in advance of the yom tovim.
As to funding, of course the funds should be released asap. However, my understanding is that the amount of funding that is being debated with the hospital administrators will come nowhere close to expanding the ICU capacity nor are there sufficient trained nursing staff to manage the worse case scenarios. Hopefully, the current 4th wave of the Delta variant will decline quickly, as it seems to have done in the UK, before the yom tovim but if not, it could be a really massive challenge to avoid a much bigger problem than Bennett et al. seem prepared for.