WHO says coronavirus herd immunity unlikely this year, even as vaccinations pick up

The World Health Organization said it will take time to produce and administer vaccines to halt the spread of Covid-19

Elsewhere, Portugal’s president tested positive, Boris Johnson is under fire over a bike ride in London, and the US has vaccinated nearly 9 million

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A nurse prepares a Covid-19 vaccine at the Bathgate Post Office vaccination facility in the Bronx, in New York. Photo: Reuters

Published: 4:30pm, 12 Jan 2021Updated: 9:36pm, 12 Jan 2021

Scientists at the World Health Organization have warned that mass vaccinations would not bring about herd immunity to the coronavirus this year, even as one leading producer boosted its production forecast.

The pandemic has infected more than 90 million people and the death toll has passed 1.94 million since China confirmed the first death in the central city of Wuhan a year ago. China has largely brought the virus under control, but is tackling a number of local infections.

Infection numbers were, however, surging across the US and Europe, particularly as Britain coped with a new strain of the disease that could see hospitals being overwhelmed.

The WHO’s chief scientist Soumya Swaminathan warned it would take time to produce and administer enough vaccine doses to halt the spread of the virus.

“We are not going to achieve any levels of population immunity or herd immunity in 2021,” she said, stressing the need to maintain physical distancing, handwashing and mask-wearing to rein in the pandemic.

The WHO also said the recent surge in global cases is largely due to “the increased mixing of people”, not the newly identified virus variants.

WHO technical lead on Covid-19, Maria Van Kerkhove, said that the spike in cases in numerous countries was detected before the new variants were identified. She noted that during the summer, Covid-19 cases were down to single digits in most countries across Europe.