Lebanese caretaker Health Minister Hamad Hassan has said he expected the country to reach a 70 percent of herd immunity by June.
As he launched the vaccination campaign at the Lebanese University, he announced that more than one million doses of AstraZeneca and more than one million doses of Pfizer will arrive in Lebanon in June.
This would help reach out to people who face difficulties registering on the digital platform, especially those residing in the countryside.
Coronavirus numbers have dropped in Lebanon in the past days. The country recorded 2,082 new cases on Wednesday, according to the Health Ministry.
The Ministry’s latest report shows that Lebanon now has a total of 515,088 COVID-19 cases since the beginning of the pandemic. Overall, 7,027 patients have died.
Director of Lebanon's Rafik Hariri University Hospital Dr. Firass Abiad considered that the restrictions enforced earlier this year have helped the cases drop.
“Several local studies estimate that 40% of the populace have already been infected. Adding those vaccinated, around 45% of the population may be immune. This is still far from the required threshold to attain herd immunity, though it can help decrease community spread,” said Abiad on his Twitter account.
“Yet, it is important to note that the current waves of infection in countries such as Brazil and India have occurred in populations where almost 50% had attained immunity. The spread is caused by new variants, something that can happen in other countries including Lebanon.”
“It is a shame epidemiologists from our renown universities do not have access to the data. It could help in reaching a better understanding. Still, let us count our blessings, something good is happening for a change,” he added.
