The global immunity of the COVID-19 herd is unlikely to be affected this year – even as countries fight for vaccines, the World Health Organization scientist warned this week.
Dr Soumya Swaminathan said on Monday that it was essential for countries to continue to encourage social distancing and other public health measures in the foreseeable future.
“Even if vaccines begin to protect the most vulnerable, we will not reach any level of population immunity or herd immunity in 2021,” Swaminathan told a news conference.
“Even if it happens in a few pockets, in a few countries, it will not protect people around the world.”
Experts estimate that about 70 percent of people need to be vaccinated to get herd immunity.
The United Kingdom, the United States, France, Canada, Germany, Israel and the Netherlands are among the countries that have already launched vaccination programs.
But many developing countries have not yet received a blow, which has been taken over mostly by richer countries.
Dr Bruce Aylward, advisor to the Director-General of WHO, urged the global community to do more to ensure that poorer nations also receive the vaccine.
“We can’t do this on our own,” Aylward said of the UN agency’s efforts to ensure that more vulnerable regions have access to fire.
With Post threads