February 21, 2021, 2:37 PM
As the seven-day average of newly confirmed COVID-19 cases in the U.S. dramatically declines, down about 66% from a month ago, Suzanne Judd, an epidemiologist at the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Public Health, says it’s “possible” we’re approaching herd immunity.
Judd points to a Columbia University study that estimates the number of active COVID-19 cases in the U.S. could be 10 times the number confirmed through testing. The study, published by NPR ahead of peer review, suggests that as of the end of January, more than a third of the U.S. population had already been infected with coronavirus.
“You add [the findings] from the Columbia study to the number of vaccinations that have been rolling out, and it’s possible that we could be approaching herd immunity,” Judd told Yahoo Finance Live. “We should know within the next two or three months if this trend holds, but this is definitely the most positive news we have seen in a long time.”