Less than half a population needs COVID-19 infection for herd immunity, study says

June 23 (UPI) -- Less than half of the population would need to be immune to COVID-19 to develop "herd immunity" to the virus, according to an analysis published Tuesday by the journal Science. 

The modeling study found that herd immunity potentially could be achieved with about 43 percent of the population being immune, as opposed to the 60 percent estimate derived from previous models. 

Researchers say, however, that the findings are intended to serve as an interpretation of how population differences might influence herd immunity to the new coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, rather than as a precise estimation, the authors said. 

"These findings highlight that a lower percentage of people need to be immune through infection to achieve herd immunity, and that this is dependent on many things, including people's activities and exposure, and if immunity is sustained," public health specialist Brandon Brown, told UP.

RTWT.