The U.S. and other developed countries are pondering a second booster for their populations, but a co-creator of the AstraZeneca vaccine warns that "we can't vaccinate the planet every four to six months."
"It's not sustainable or affordable," Andrew Pollard, director of the Oxford Vaccine Group, told the Daily Telegraph. Pollard said the vaccination effort must target the vulnerable.
Pollard estimates that 9 billion COVID doses, including AstraZeneca, have been given worldwide since the first non-trial doses were jabbed in late 2020. He said the effort to keep everyone protected from infection must be abandoned.
"At some point, society has to open up. When we do open, there will be a period with a bump in infections, which is why winter is probably not the best time," he told the Telegraph. "But that's a decision for the policymakers, not the scientists."
Pollard, in an interview with Sky News, said it is too early to say whether future coronavirus variants will be milder than those that emerged earlier in the pandemic.
"I don't think we can be sure at this moment that future versions of coronavirus, the sons and daughters of omicron, will be causing mild disease," he added.
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"It's not sustainable or affordable," Andrew Pollard, director of the Oxford Vaccine Group, told the Daily Telegraph. Pollard said the vaccination effort must target the vulnerable.
Pollard estimates that 9 billion COVID doses, including AstraZeneca, have been given worldwide since the first non-trial doses were jabbed in late 2020. He said the effort to keep everyone protected from infection must be abandoned.
"At some point, society has to open up. When we do open, there will be a period with a bump in infections, which is why winter is probably not the best time," he told the Telegraph. "But that's a decision for the policymakers, not the scientists."
Pollard, in an interview with Sky News, said it is too early to say whether future coronavirus variants will be milder than those that emerged earlier in the pandemic.
"I don't think we can be sure at this moment that future versions of coronavirus, the sons and daughters of omicron, will be causing mild disease," he added.
'We can't vaccinate the planet every 4 to 6 months,' vaccine creator warns: Live COVID updates
The co-creator of the AstraZeneca vaccine warns that "we can't vaccinate the planet every four to six months." More COVID updates.www.usatoday.com
