Dr Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, testifies at a hearing on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Commission (HELP) on Capitol Hill in Washington, USA
Kevin Dietsch | Reuters
If the US allows the coronavirus to spread uncontrollably in an attempt to reach the so-called herd immunity, the ‘death toll’ warned enormously, ‘warned White House adviser coronavirus Dr. Anthony Fauci on Thursday.
“If everyone has the contract, even with the relatively high percentage of people without symptoms … many people will die,” Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, actor Matthew McConaughey said during a live discussion on Instagram .
According to epidemiologists, herd immunity is necessary to contain a virus and it is achieved when enough of the population is vaccinated or survives infection and builds antibodies to ward off new infections. The virus then does not have enough hosts to infect.
Most scientists think that 60% to 80% of the population needs to be vaccinated or have natural antibodies to achieve herd immunity, said Drs. Mike Ryan, executive director of the World Health Organization’s health situation program, last month.
However, the coronavirus has infected less than 2% of the US population and has already killed at least 166,970 people, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Leaving the virus unchecked to achieve herd immunity would bring the cause of death to a level that is “completely unacceptable,” Fauci said. Americans have more underlying conditions, such as diabetes and obesity, that lead to more serious cases and even death from the coronavirus.
“If you look at the United States of America with our epidemic of obesity as it was, with the number of people with hypertension, with the number of people with diabetes, if everyone were infected, the death toll would be enormous and completely unacceptable, “Fauci said.
“And that’s why we say ‘Let it fly! Let everyone get infected and we’ll be fine.’ That is a bad idea, “he added.
WHO officials have also advised public officials to try to achieve herd immunity by spreading Covid-19 rapidly across their communities. Organizational officials have said it would overwhelm hospitals and kill many people.
“We are nowhere near (herd immunity), which means this virus has a long way to go to burn in our communities before we ever reach it,” Ryan said.
Experts of infectious disease, including Fauci, argue that it is unlikely that the coronavirus will ever be eradicated, although peoples may bring the level of infection to “low levels”.
“I think with a combination of good public health measures, a degree of global herd immunity and a good vaccine, I hope and feel cautiously optimistic that we will get it. I think if we all three of each other, we will get control of it. , whether it’s this year or next year. I’m not sure, “Fauci told the TB Alliance on July 22.
– CNBC’s Berkeley Lovelace Jr. contributed to this report.
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