Pfizer announced Friday that the future of COVID-19 may switch from pandemic to endemic by 2024.
Executives with Pfizer stated that the novel Coronavirus may end up in our lives for good, becoming more like the flu and leading to regional outbreaks.
Pfizer’s chief scientific officer, Mikael Dolsten, said how and when an endemic happens and the pandemic ends depends on the disease evolving.
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New variants will also impact what changes may come.
Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, believes that the pandemic will come to an end when there are large dips in deaths per day and hospitals aren’t overwhelmed.
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There are around 1,100 deaths per day.
Dr. Scott Gottlieb, the former Food and Drug Administration commissioner, believes the pandemic phase will end soon, moving into an endemic phase.
Gottlieb made that statement before the Omicron variant was discovered.
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