Steps to Herd Immunity

WAAY-31's Bridget Divers updates us on the future of Herd Immunity and how we can get to that point.

- nationwide.

We are getting closer every day to reaching herd immunity - but doctors say we are not there just yet.

Waay-31's bridget divers heard from a birmginham professor about the steps every one of us can take to get us closer to that threshold.

Bridget?

Herd immunity could happen as early as june but to make that happen more people need to get vaccinated.

Dr. suzanne judd/ uab school of public health professor "currently adph is hitting nearly 100,000 vaccinated a week which is fantastic.

We need to keep hitting that target in order to make the june deadline."

And it's not just getting vaccinated that will help stop the spread of covid.

Wearing a mask and social distancing -- things we all have been doing for the past year will help.

"that mask even though we don't have a mask mandate is so important to slow the spread of covid.

We're not out of the woods yet.

We still have a ways to go."

Dr. judd says going to big events is not the best idea right now though because a lot of people could still get the virus..

"it makes me a little bit nervous.

A gathering over a 1,000 people, you're guaranteed that one person there does have covid that could be spread to somebody else."

She says that's why it's so important that everyone gets vaccinated -- even high schoolers.

"it's absolutely critical.

Not only those as young as 16, but we need the fda to review the evidence from the pfizer trails that shows it's very safe in 12 to 15-year-olds.

We actually really need to get the population as young as 12 at least 70% vaccinated because that's what gets us to herd immunity."

Now one of the locations where you can get a vaccine in huntsville is at john hunt park which is run by huntsville hospital.

Their online portal has plenty of vaccine appointments available for the next month.

Live in huntsville, bridget divers, waay-31 news.