The United States will need to keep the number of COVID-19 cases low to prevent further outbreaks created by variants and for the vaccine to remain effective, an expert recently told CNN.
What is happening?
Dr. Michael Mina, an epidemiologist at the Harvard School of Public Health TH Chan, told CNN late on Tuesday that the COVID-19 vaccine will continue to be effective against the coronavirus if people keep the cases low.
- “The best thing we could do to improve the chances that the vaccine will continue to work as we hope is to reduce cases as much as possible, without these reductions occurring as a result of immunity derived from the vaccine,” he said.
Mina said wearing masks and staying socially aloof could prevent the coronavirus from spreading at a high level. Soon, it is likely that you are interacting with someone who has already been vaccinated.
- “The more opportunities we give the virus to get in touch with someone who is immune, the more opportunities there are for the virus to find a way to get around that level of immunity and these antibodies,” Mina told CNN.
Don’t relax
Experts continue to urge Americans not to ease their habits now amid the coronavirus pandemic. In fact, Dr. Brandon Webb, an infectious disease physician at Intermountain Healthcare in Utah, told reporters that it is not the time to relax, according to Deseret News.
- Webb said that about 20% of Utahns have immunity against COVID-19, either through contact screening or by receiving the vaccine, according to Deseret News.
According to NBC News, public health experts still advise vaccinated Americans to wear masks, distance themselves socially and avoid crowds and poorly ventilated areas.