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Reuters
Dr Ghebreyesus said allowing the virus to spread would cause ‘unnecessary’ suffering
The director of the World Health Organization has ruled out a herd immunity response to the pandemic.
Herd immunity occurs when a large part of a community becomes immune to disease through vaccines or through the massive spread of disease.
Some have argued that the coronavirus should be allowed to spread naturally in the absence of a vaccine.
But WHO chief Tedros Ghebreyesus said such an approach was “scientifically and ethically problematic.”
There have been more than 37 million confirmed cases of coronavirus worldwide since the pandemic began. More than a million people are known to have died.
While hundreds of vaccines are currently in development, and some are in advanced trials, none have received international approval.
Speaking at a press conference on Monday, Dr. Ghebreyesus argued that the long-term impacts of the coronavirus, as well as the strength and duration of any immune responses, remained unknown.
“Herd immunity is achieved by protecting people from a virus, not exposing them to it,” he said.
“Never in the history of public health has herd immunity been used as a strategy to respond to an outbreak, much less a pandemic.”
The WHO chief added that seroprevalence tests, where blood is tested for antibodies, suggested that only 10% of people had been exposed to the coronavirus in most countries.
“Letting Covid-19 circulate uncontrollably, therefore, means allowing unnecessary infection, suffering and death,” he said.
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