WHO say Covid herd immunity ‘unethical’ but al

The head of the WHO has warned countries against perusing herd immunity to stop the spread of the virus, branding the method “unethical”. The remarks on Monday, came just days after the WHO’s special envoy for COVID-19 warned against introducing lockdowns. The radical plan of herd immunity is achieved when the vast majority of the population becomes immune to the disease and therefore can no longer spread it.

https://worldabcnews.com/coronavirus-news-who-say-covid-herd-immunity-unethical-but-also-rejects-lockdown-world-news/

carbon20 wrote: Posted same story yesterday...... No herd immunity,no lockdowns.... What's the answer...... A vaccine ? I have my doubts about that...... Stay safe everyone 😷😉

The answer?  Several, actually.....

a) effective and affordable anti-virals....influenza is easier to control because there are a variety of effective and relatively cheap anti-virals (Tamiflu, Relenza) that can be deployed.  We don't have that yet for COVID-19, and remdesivir is still being tested for effectiveness.  The blood pressure drug Losartan is being investigated as a possible SARS-CoV2 antiviral, but I haven't heard about it lately. 

b) continue "community hygiene" - it isn't that difficult to wear masks & wash hands, is it?  This will be a long-term strategy that will likely save many lives at low cost.  

c) monoclonal and polyclonal antibody cocktails - Pres. Trump received the Regeneron version and it seemed to help him.  However, these also do not confer any immunity once dosing halts, so they really fit into the anti-viral category.  Very expensive and largely unproven.  

d) vaccine - this will happen eventually, but as with the flu, we will need many repeated doses.  

One thing that makes this virus so deadly is that it only recently spilled over from its animal host (bats, pangolins etc.).  As the virus circulates through humanity, I suspect it will lose some of its lethality and become more like other coronaviruses that are nothing more than a nuisance.   However, it could take a number of years or decades.

https://theconversation.com/covid-19-will-probably-become-endemic-heres-what-that-means-146435

Good news is that treatments seem to be improving, and mortalities decreasing.  Use of steroids to counter the cytokine storm damage is a major breakthrough, and more testing will be key to keeping this disease at a low simmer.  However, we are going to have to deal with it for a long time.  Sorry for the bad news. 

Be safe, one and all.