No way to eradicate the infection, but the US is quick to propagate the “threshold” of living with COVID-19: Dr. Fauci

While the US faces rising infections and record hospital admissions for COVID-19, Anthony Fauci, the country’s foremost infectious disease expert, says the country is touting the “threshold” of transitioning life with the virus as a manageable disease .

The leading US scientist told the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) that eliminating Covid was unrealistic and that “Omicron, with its exceptional, unprecedented transmission efficiency, will ultimately find almost everyone.”

Also read | According to the WHO, over 50% of Europeans are on their way to contracting the Omicron variant of the coronavirus

“There is no way we are going to eradicate this virus,” he said because of its contagiousness, tendency to mutate into new variants and a large number of people who have not been vaccinated.

While vaccination is still effective for severe consequences, it loses its effectiveness against the infection.

But “as Omicron goes up and down,” hopefully the country will enter a new phase “where there is enough protection in (the) community and enough medication available so that if someone becomes infected and belongs to a high risk group “It will be very easy to treat this person,” said Fauci.

“When we get there, there will be this transition and we may be on the cusp of it,” he said.

Also read | COVID-19: Is ‘Deltacron’ a new variant? A British virologist explains what it could be

However, given that the country is currently experiencing nearly a million infections daily, nearly 150,000 hospitalizations and more than 1,200 deaths a day, he advises, “We are not at this point yet”.

Although a significant proportion of Covid cases are believed to be hospitalized “with” the disease rather than the disease, official data showed 145,982 hospitalizations for the disease.

Watch | Gravitas: Omicron heralds another supply chain crisis

The Omicron variant can cause severe cases, at a lower rate than Delta, but affects more people because of its extreme contagiousness.

According to New York state, the vaccine’s age-adjusted effectiveness against hospital stays was 92 percent through Dec. 27.

(With contributions from agencies)