Covid at ‘fragile moment’ with no normality until 2024 warns professor

The world may not return to normal for another three years, a top coronavirus expert has warned.

The Professor of international health at the Burnet Institute says vaccines won't instantly fix the world's problems as it battles the killer virus.

Prof Michael Toole feels there is a big fight in front of us, despite the successful mass rollout.

Describing this as a “fragile moment in modern world history”, he warns much more time will be needed for normality to return.

He said factors like when each country will finish their vaccination process and concerning new variants will mean we won't be rid of Covid for years.

Letting transmission go unchecked is also a reason why it could take until 2024 to be free of the deadly bug, he predicts.

But he stressed things could be different if the world works together to see off the virus.

The Professor claims it is becoming “increasingly clear” that there will be no “mission accomplished moment" when the world defeats Covid-19.

"We are at a crossroads with two end games," he wrote in The Conversation.

"Whether the race to end the pandemic will be a sprint or a marathon remains to be seen, as does the extent of the gap between rich and poor contestants.

"However, as vaccines roll out across the world, it seems we are collectively just out of the starting blocks.

"This implies the world won’t be back to normal travel, trade and supply chains until 2024 unless rich countries take actions — such as waiving vaccine patents, diversifying production of vaccines and supporting vaccine delivery — to help poor countries catch up."

But he added: "there are already signs of complacency and much misinformation to counter".

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