El Paso at 70% vaccination rate, but expert says that’s no longer herd immunity
EL PASO, Texas -- El Paso hit an important vaccination milestone on Friday with the number originally linked to herd immunity.
70% of the eligible El Paso population, 12 and older, are now fully vaccinated against Covid-19.
But there's a word of caution, as the goalpost is moving for herd immunity due to the Delta variant.
Dr. Armando Meza, chief of infectious diseases at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, tells ABC-7 that the original 70% vaccination benchmark no longer applies - since there's higher transmissibility with the variant.
"The herd immunity of 70% was for the original strain... Now that we have the variants and the higher transmission rate than the original strain, then you currently need to have a higher immunity percent."
He said we might not be able to get away from face masks and social distancing for the next couple of years until close to 100% of the population is vaccinated.
