By Canadian Press

Contagious Delta means more people need to be vaccinated to reach herd immunity

Oct 1, 2021 | 12:58 PM

OTTAWA — Dr. Theresa Tam, the chief public health officer, says the Delta variant is moving the goalposts on the rate of vaccination to reach herd immunity from COVID-19.

Tam has previously said she would like to see all age groups at least 80 per cent fully vaccinated as soon as possible to fight the surge in COVID-19 cases.

She says today the very contagious Delta variant demands even higher vaccination rates to provide community protection from the virus. 

Tam suggests vaccination coverage may now need to be 80 per cent for the whole population, as opposed to just those who qualify for the vaccine.

The magic number will be different for each community based on how many people in the area have already contracted the virus and the density of the population.

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Tam says Canada should aim for the highest number of vaccinated people possible. 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 1, 2021.

Laura Osman, The Canadian Press