'It's A Totally Different Landscape:' UPMC Researcher Shows Cautious Optimism Over COVID-19 Pandemic
By: Patrick Damp/KDKA-TV
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - One year ago on 60 Minutes, UPMC Center for Vaccine Research Director Dr. Paul Duprex warned that the COVID-19 pandemic wasn't over and we'd face variants.
One year later, on 60 Minutes once again, said we're moving in a better direction.
"There have been multiple more variants," he said. "But we're moving in a direction where there are not as many people who are in hospital because of the disease. And we've got many more people vaccinated. And we understand a lot about first shots, second shots, and now boosters. So, it's a totally different landscape."
The Northern Ireland native leading the UPMC Center for Vaccine Research said that he's hopeful COVID-19 will mutate into a milder form, similar to the common cold.
"I would say it's very likely," he said. "But we just have to wait and see where the virus ends up, and that's just good science. Scientists follow the virus, keep a close eye on it, and we understand how that virus changes over time and where it will go."
You can watch and read Dr. Duprex's full 60 Minutes interview on the state of the COVID-19 pandemic on the CBS News website at this link.