COVID pandemic has just begun as only 15% of world population is vaccinated

It’s almost been two years since the coronavirus pandemic first started, and while many authorities have said that the troubling times are almost over, Dr Larry Brilliant has said that we’re actually 'closer to the beginning of the pandemic than the end.'

In fact, he—along with other experts in the field—reiterated the fact that the coronavirus will become a part of our daily lives just like the influenza virus.

More variants to come

The Delta variant may be the driving force behind the surge in cases in multiple countries, but the expert has stressed that even if the Delta variant eventually goes away, other variants will take its place as long as there is a high global percentage of unvaccinated people. At the moment only 15% of the global population has gotten fully inoculated. When in conversation with CNBC, Brilliant said:

Unless we vaccinate everyone in 200-plus countries, there will still be new variants.

I do caution people that this is the Delta variant and we have not run out of Greek letters so there may be more to come.

And that means get everyone vaccinated — not just in your neighbourhood, not just in your family, not just in your country, but all over the world.

Booster shots

Brilliant has confirmed, however, that the ‘vaccines are delaying the damage’ the virus causes. Hence he is recommending that all people over the age of 65 be given a booster shot as soon as possible. Additionally, he has urged—with equal importance—that vaccines be supplied to countries who have not been able to access them. He added:

So I would say that those people should get a third dose, a booster right away, as quickly as moving the vaccines to countries that have not had a great chance of buying them or having access to them. I consider those two things to be almost the same.