Pandemic Not Over Agrees Noted Immunologist Dr. James Hildreth
The coronavirus pandemic is not over. This was confirmed to CYInterview by Dr. James Hildreth. A noted immunologist with a stellar background, Dr. Hildreth is currently the President and CEO of the Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee. We have been honored to have the doctor with us previously on CYInterview and he has joined us once again.
The immunologist has been studying infectious diseases for more than 40 years. In 2020, he was appointed to the FDA Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee that reviews the Covid-19 vaccines for public approval.
Most of Dr. Hildreth’s research has focused on HIV/AIDS. His educational background includes a Bachelor’s Degree in chemistry from Harvard, a doctoral degree in immunology from Oxford and a medical degree from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. Dr. Hildreth confirmed to us that – as of when we spoke last Monday – the number of people infected and hospitalized for Covid-19 was higher than it was in September of 2020, in the first year of pandemic.
“Unfortunately, it is and there’s some other types of measures you might look at to come to that conclusion. For example, when there are 100 or more cases per 100,000 individuals, we call that a community with high transmission. And there’s others, 50 or more would be substantial.
And if you look at a map of the United States, 80 percent of the counties in the country have transmission rates that are substantial or high. So, there’s absolutely no question that we’re still in a pandemic and the global map pretty much tells the same story. I think many people believe we put this behind us, but clearly, we have not.”
The infections disease expert says most people dying from Covid-19 are not taking the appropriate mitigation steps:
“Most of the people who are dying, certainly among the elderly group, are those who are not taking mitigation steps, who are not vaccinated. So, the virus is still out there. It’s still doing great harm in some communities and I think we need to be vigilant and I think we’ve come to a point where if our leaders don’t take steps to protect us, certainly we must take steps on our own to protect ourselves and our families, but the pandemic is not over.”
The Meharry Medical College President and CEO says many more people would have died from Covid-19 had it not been for the vaccine:
“The plain and simple fact is that science that led to vaccines saved the world. I mean, that’s my feeling about this. Were it not for the vaccines, this could have been just a devastating pandemic on a scale that we can scarcely imagine. I mean, after all, almost 700 million people around the world have been infected by this virus or known to be infected by it.
And six million people have died, over six million, almost seven million. Imagine what those numbers would be were it not for the vaccines. Let me just say, it’s also quite remarkable to me that 5.3 billion of us have gotten vaccines.”
Dr. Hildreth believes if a person gets all vaccines and booster shots for Covid and wears an appropriate mask, it will create the best possible scenario for not contracting the virus:
“None of these things offer, I mean, complete protection. But it’s like, if you have a series of steps you take, each one with a less than 100 percent of efficiency, the combination of those two gets you so much closer to complete protection.
And that’s why I’m still wearing a mask, I’ve gotten all of the vaccines and boosters. And I’m circumspect when I’m in a large group of people who I don’t know their status and how well they’ve tried to take steps to mitigate the infection. I wear a mask now when I’m traveling still because, I mean, that’s the setting where you absolutely don’t know.”
You can hear more from our CYInterview with Dr. James Hildreth by listening to it in its entirety below:
Editor’s Note: Nothing in this CYInterview, in the above text or the attached audio, should be construed as medical advice. Consult a physician prior to making any changes to your medical regimen, diet and or exercise routine.
Listen to the entire Dr. James Hildreth CYInterview:
Listen to the entire Dr. James Hildreth CYInterview on YouTube:
You can find Dr. James Hildreth on Twitter by clicking here.
You can learn more about Dr. James Hildreth by clicking here.
You can find more information about Meharry Medical College by clicking here.