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The World Health Organization said on Monday that even with the widespread roll-out of vaccination programs, herd immunity will not be achieved in 2021.
Dr Soumya Swaminathan, the health agency’s chief scientist, spoke at a press conference and urged people to continue to take strict social distancing measures for the rest of the year as it will take some time to build this immunity.
“Even if vaccines begin to protect the most vulnerable, we will not achieve any level of population immunity or herd immunity in 2021,” Swaminathan said. “Even if it happens in a few pockets, in a few countries, it won’t protect people around the world.”
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“The vaccines are going to come,” she continued. “They will go to all countries … but in the meantime, we must not forget that there is [public health] measures that work. “
These measures include social distancing, wearing masks and good hygiene.
Herd immunity – which is usually achieved by vaccination – occurs when a sufficient number of people in a population have the necessary antibodies to ward off infection, thereby preventing its spread. Experts estimate that it will take around 75% of the population to achieve collective immunity.
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Dr Bruce Aylward, adviser to the WHO Director-General, called on the global community to ensure that all countries have access to vaccines.
He added that the United Nations health agency was hoping coronavirus vaccinations could start this or next month in some of the world’s poorest countries.
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“We can’t do this alone,” Aylward said.
Fox News’ Madeline Farber and The Associated Press contributed to this report
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