The covid-19 vaccine is closer but not its distribution 2:58
(CNN) - Infectious disease expert Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, says the world will most likely never get rid of the coronavirus.
"We will never eradicate this virus," Osterholm said on CNN's "Newsroom", comparing the coronavirus to HIV, and explaining that we will be able to control it but it will never completely disappear.
“This is here for the rest of all humanity. This is a virus that we will never get rid of, ”he said.
Osterholm's comments come a day after Dr. Anthony Fauci, the country's leading infectious disease expert, said he doesn't really see that we "can eradicate" the virus entirely.
"Until we are truly committed to taking this virus to a very, very low level, we are not going to do much except continue to put out this raging wildfire as best we can," Osterholm said.
Osterholm also said that while great strides are being made in the development of the covid-19 vaccine, the first iteration will be just one step.
"I think the best we can hope for is a vaccine that protects most of us for at least months and maybe not years. The next level of vaccines would try to do more with the immune system than we have now. But they are far, far away in the future. They are not going to have any impact on what we are doing right now. ”
"We will never eradicate this virus. … This is here for the rest of all humankind. This is a virus we're never going to get rid of, ”infectious disease expert @mtosterholm tells @PoppyHarlowCNN and @jimsciutto. https://t.co/bjaLuIrRUQ pic.twitter.com/j3EVDhwmeW
- CNN Newsroom (@CNNnewsroom) July 23, 2020
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