As the world continues to fight against COVID-19, another claimed from Marc Lipstich, a Harvard epidemiologist said coronavirus "will ultimately not be containable" and, within a year, will infect somewhere between 40 to 70 percent of humanity, The Atlantic reports.
But don't be too alarmed Lipsitch clarifies, many of the people wont have severe illness or even show sypmtoms at all, which is already the case for many people who have tested positive for the virus.
Two other experts have recently shared similar estimates.
Ira Longini, a World Health Organization adviser biostatistician predicted that two-thirds of the global population may get infected by COVID-19.
Prof Gabriel Leung, the chair of public health medicine at Hong Kong University also said that 2.5 additional people estimated for each infected rate is accurate, that would affect 60 to 80 percent of the world's population.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has already said that it is preparing for the coronavirus to have a greater impact in the U.S. than the 15 confirmed cases currently.
Viruses like SARS, MERS, and the avian flu were eventually contained in part because they were more intense and had a higher fatality rate. In other words, if you were infected by the virus that caused SARS, chances were you weren't out and about. But because the current coronavirus, known as COVID-19, can be asymptomatic, or at least very mild, there's a better chance people will likely go about their day as normal. The down side, though, is that it becomes harder to trace and prevent. In that sense it's similar to the flu, which can also be deadly, but often passes without the infected person seeking medical care, Yahoo News reported.
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