Gottlieb says 90% of Americans could have post-delta immunity

Dr Scott Gottlieb told CNBC’s Jim Cramer on Monday that he believed up to 90% of U.S. residents would benefit from some form of immune protection against the coronavirus as the wave of the delta variant passes.

In an interview with “Mad Money,” the former Food and Drug Administration commissioner said achieving that amount of coverage was important, even though the country never completely eradicated the disease.

“I am optimistic that we are peaking in Covid for the grim truth that the delta wave is so pervasive and infects so many people that behind it we are going to have immunity in, at least, 85%, maybe 90% of the population, “said Gottlieb.” Some will have acquired this immunity through vaccination. Some will have acquired this immunity by infection. Some will have been both vaccinated and infected. “

As a result, Gottlieb said the highly transmissible delta variant – which currently accounts for almost all new infections in the United States – will no longer spread from person to person as effectively.

“On the back of that, you’re going to have so much immunity in the population that the virus isn’t going to go away – I don’t think we’re going to achieve true herd immunity where it goes – but it’s definitely not going to go away.” spread to the level we’re seeing now, ”Gottlieb told Cramer. “The prevalence will decrease.”

Gottlieb, who now sits on the board of directors of vaccine maker Covid Pfizer, said he expects infection rates to drop dramatically around Thanksgiving “barring the unforeseen” as a new variant of the coronavirus that pierces previous immunity.

There have been around 43 million confirmed coronavirus infections in the United States since the pandemic began early last year, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. However, experts say it is likely an undercoverage, as not all people who are actually infected are tested and come forward as an official case of Covid.

Currently, 213.66 million people in the United States, or 64.4% of the population, have received at least one dose of the Covid vaccine, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Only Americans aged 12 and over are currently eligible to receive a Covid vaccine, but Pfizer’s two-dose vaccine may soon receive emergency use clearance from the FDA for 5 to 11 years after trials Company clinics have shown that it generates a “robust” immune response. . Pfizer is also studying the vaccine in children under 5, but collecting the data will take a little longer.

Moderna, which produces a vaccine using the same technology as Pfizer, is also conducting trials on its effectiveness in children. The company said it could seek emergency clearance from the FDA, possibly by the end of the year.

Gottlieb said vaccinating children against Covid is an important step in turning the tide of the pandemic for reasons that notably allow vaccinated parents to worry less about bringing the virus home and making an unprotected child sick. .

Disclosure: Scott Gottlieb is a contributor to CNBC and serves on the boards of directors of Pfizer, genetic testing startup Tempus, health technology company Aetion, and biotech company Illumina. He is also co-chair of the Healthy Sail Panel of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings and Royal Caribbean.