Washington Dr. Anthony Fauci, one of the nation’s leading experts on infectious diseases, warned Sunday that the United States is “unlikely” to achieve collective immunity against the coronavirus if part of the population refuses to receive a vaccine against the coronavirus.
In an interview that aired on Sunday as part of the Aspen Festival of Ideas, Fauci said he would “settle” for a coronavirus vaccine that is between 70% and 75% effective, “because that would take it to that level that would be the level of collective immunity. ” “
But when asked by CNN Senior Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen if the United States can obtain collective immunity if 25% of the population refuses to receive a coronavirus vaccine with that effectiveness rate, Fauci said: “No, little probable”.
“That is one of the reasons why we have to make sure that we involve the community as we are doing now, so that people in the community help us, so that people understand that we are doing everything possible to demonstrate that it is safe. and that it is effective and that it is for the good of them as individuals and in society to take the vaccine, “said Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
Fauci, a member of the White House coronavirus task force, said the federal government has “a lot of work to do” to encourage Americans to get vaccinated once a coronavirus vaccine is available to the public.
“There is a general anti-science, anti-authority, anti-vaccine feeling among some people in this country, an alarmingly large percentage of people relatively speaking,” he said.
Fauci said some vaccine is unlikely to be 100% protective against coronavirus, noting that the best available vaccine, which protects against measles, is 97% effective with two doses.
Several companies are currently working on developing a coronavirus vaccine, and the Trump administration launched Operation Warp Speed earlier this year to accelerate development and distribution.
In May, the Department of Health and Human Services said it is partnering with drug maker AstraZeneca for at least 300 million doses of a coronavirus vaccine developed by the University of Oxford and is investing $ 1.2 billion in that effort. .
Earlier this month, Fauci saying In the Journal of the American Medical Association there are four or five trials underway for vaccine candidates, and he expects the United States to have millions of doses of a vaccine by the end of the year.
He reiterated on Sunday that several companies say that by early 2021 and until next year, there will be hundreds of millions of doses available.
“If that is true and we will accept them, then you, I and others could have a vaccine that we could take in December, January or February,” said Fauci.
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