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COVID-19 herd immunity in the absence of a vaccine : an irresponsible approach

Khalife, Jade LU orcid and VanGennep, Derrick (2021) In Epidemiology and health 43.
Abstract

As severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) continues to spread rapidly throughout the human population, the concept of "herd immunity" has attracted the attention of both decision-makers and the general public. In the absence of a vaccine, this entails that a large proportion of the population will be infected to develop immunity that would limit the severity and/or extent of subsequent outbreaks. We argue that adopting such an approach should be avoided for several reasons. There are significant uncertainties about whether achieving herd immunity is possible. If possible, achieving herd immunity would impose a large burden on society. There are gaps in protection, making it difficult to shield the vulnerable. It... (More)

As severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) continues to spread rapidly throughout the human population, the concept of "herd immunity" has attracted the attention of both decision-makers and the general public. In the absence of a vaccine, this entails that a large proportion of the population will be infected to develop immunity that would limit the severity and/or extent of subsequent outbreaks. We argue that adopting such an approach should be avoided for several reasons. There are significant uncertainties about whether achieving herd immunity is possible. If possible, achieving herd immunity would impose a large burden on society. There are gaps in protection, making it difficult to shield the vulnerable. It would defeat the purpose of avoiding harm caused by the virus. Lastly, dozens of countries are showing that containment is possible.

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Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Coronavirus, Endemic diseases, Ethics, Herd immunity, Vaccines
in
Epidemiology and health
volume
43
article number
e2021012
publisher
Korean Society of Epidemiology
external identifiers
  • pmid:33541010
  • scopus:85103993755
ISSN
2092-7193
DOI
10.4178/epih.e2021012
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
5d21e70f-8a50-422a-8702-c83f0818c363
date added to LUP
2021-04-21 08:14:49
date last changed
2025-05-19 20:55:17
@article{5d21e70f-8a50-422a-8702-c83f0818c363,
  abstract     = {{<p>As severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) continues to spread rapidly throughout the human population, the concept of "herd immunity" has attracted the attention of both decision-makers and the general public. In the absence of a vaccine, this entails that a large proportion of the population will be infected to develop immunity that would limit the severity and/or extent of subsequent outbreaks. We argue that adopting such an approach should be avoided for several reasons. There are significant uncertainties about whether achieving herd immunity is possible. If possible, achieving herd immunity would impose a large burden on society. There are gaps in protection, making it difficult to shield the vulnerable. It would defeat the purpose of avoiding harm caused by the virus. Lastly, dozens of countries are showing that containment is possible.</p>}},
  author       = {{Khalife, Jade and VanGennep, Derrick}},
  issn         = {{2092-7193}},
  keywords     = {{Coronavirus; Endemic diseases; Ethics; Herd immunity; Vaccines}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  publisher    = {{Korean Society of Epidemiology}},
  series       = {{Epidemiology and health}},
  title        = {{COVID-19 herd immunity in the absence of a vaccine : an irresponsible approach}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.4178/epih.e2021012}},
  doi          = {{10.4178/epih.e2021012}},
  volume       = {{43}},
  year         = {{2021}},
}