Right now the COVID-19 vaccine conversation is focused on the fretful disconnect between supply and demand. People who want it can’t get it. Appointments are made and then canceled. Frustration simmers.
That’s today’s reality. There will come a time, educated observers say, when the scenario flips and the rollout, after finally hitting a nice cruising speed, will run into a residual wall of vaccine hesitancy and resistance, the Heartbreak Hill at mile 20 of this marathon.
“Political leaders and public health experts need to recognize that what appears to be considerable public demand for the COVID-19 vaccine right now may be more modest in the coming months,” professors Matt Motta and Timothy Callaghan predict. “In its place, experts will be faced with the new challenge of convincing hesitant groups to get vaccinated in order to reach herd immunity… Developing these communications and identifying appropriate messengers to deliver this information will be vital to stop
Surely, this means we can stop wearing a face mask?
Eventually.
As with so much else in this pandemic, there isn’t an easy answer for exactly when we can start to relax. But, clearly, the rapid rollout of Covid-19 vaccines, like the ones developed by Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech, is our best path out of the crisis.
“We have every reason to believe that these are among some of the very best vaccines that we have ever tested,” said Aaron Richterman, a fellow researching infectious diseases at the University of Pennsylvania.
Though clinical trials give us confidence that the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines block close to 95 percent of cases of the disease thereby preventing the most severe outcomes of Covid-19 there are still some uncertainties. Key among them is how well vaccines work to block transmission of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19. Vaccines serve not only to protect individuals but also, after a certain threshold of vaccination, the population
WHO Changes Definition of Herd Immunity
Public health policies, public perception potentially affected as terminology changes
In a shocking reversal that’s akin to redefining reality, the World Health Organization has changed its definition of herd immunity. Herd immunity occurs when enough people acquire immunity to an infectious disease such that it can no longer spread widely in the community.
When the number susceptible is low enough to prevent epidemic growth, herd immunity is said to have been reached. Prior to the introduction of vaccines, all herd immunity was achieved via exposure to and recovery from an infectious disease.
Eventually, as vaccination became widespread, the concept of herd immunity evolved to include not only the naturally acquired immunity that comes from prior illness, but also the temporary acquired immunity that can occur after vaccination.