MOSCOW, September 26. /TASS/. The novel coronavirus infection may turn into a seasonal disease if the herd immunity in the country is at the level of 80%, Deputy Director of the Russian Central Research Institute of Epidemiology Alexander Gorelov told TASS.
"An absolutely clear forecast can be developed: the disease will become seasonal against presence of the herd immunity at the level of 80%, while it is composed of two components - the post-vaccination and the natural ones. Early forecasts that 60% would be enough have been regrettably revised across the globe for the time being," the expert said.
Only a third of the Russian population has the coronavirus immunity at present, Gorelov said. "The time [of reaching the herd immunity - TASS] directly depend on the vaccination rates, and these are conditioned by our commitment to vaccination, awareness and activity on this matter," he added.