Could the pandemic finally be over in 2022? The CEO of Moderna seems to think so.

On Wednesday, while speaking with Swiss news outlet Neue Zuercher Zeitung, top Moderna executive, Stéphane Bancel, said the ongoing uptick in vaccine production shows that by the middle of next year, there will be more than enough doses for the global population.

Bancel noted that vaccinations will soon be available for infants and that he is confident that eventually, getting the COVID-19 vaccine will become an annual decision for just about everyone on the planet.

“If you look at the industry-wide expansion of production capacities over the past six months, enough doses should be available by the middle of next year so that everyone on this earth can be vaccinated,” Bancel explained, according to Reuters. “Boosters should also be possible to the extent required.”

“Those who do not get vaccinated will immunize themselves naturally, because the Delta variant is so contagious. In this way, we will end up in a situation similar to that of the flu. You can either get vaccinated and have a good winter. Or you don’t do it and risk getting sick and possibly even ending up in hospital.”

When directly asked if that meant life could return to normal by the second half of 2022, he said: “As of today, in a year, I assume.”

Boxes containing the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine are prepared to be shipped at a distribution center. Dozens of vials of the Moderna vaccine were thrown out in Wisconsin in “human error,” officials said. (Photo by Paul Sancya – Pool/Getty Images)

Bancel did stress though, that people who were vaccinated last autumn will “undoubtedly” need a refresher via a booster shot, which is essentially half the dose of the original dose.

“The volume of vaccine is the biggest limiting factor. With half the dose, we would have 3 billion doses available worldwide for the coming year instead of just 2 billion,” he said.

As we previously reported, in August, medical professionals are studying to what extent antibodies diminish within the eight-month period after Pfizer and Moderna inoculations. 

A study from the National Urban League focused on 15,000 minorities and their vaccine hesitancy showed that Black Americans are far more skeptical than white people when it comes to a COVID-19 vaccine. However, overall, only 26% of Black Americans are far more skeptical than white people about a COVID-19 vaccine.

Of the Black people polled, the study found that Black Americans’ vaccine hesitancy was not as high as originally thought. 65% to 70% of African Americans said they would get the shot. Of the about 30% who said they were not inclined to get vaccinated, half of them wanted more information. 

“My job is not to play on fears but to give it to everybody straight,” Marc Moral, head of The National Urban League told theGrio, exclusively. He said he thinks that if the FDA and the CDC recommend a vaccine booster shot, “the people who have already been vaccinated will be very inclined to get a booster shot. While those who were hesitant will remain hesitant and those who are reluctant will remain reluctant.”

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