(Iowa City, IA) -- Infectious Disease Specialist Dr. Patricia Winokur at the University of Iowa says the world really need a large swath of people to get a COVID-19 vaccine to reach herd immunity. She says whether it's from virus exposure or from a vaccine, it will be difficult to simply eliminate COVID-19. She says more likely is a scenario in which, due to herd immunity, the impact of future exposure will not result in serious illness, but infection will be more similar to the common cold. She says while scientists have learned a lot about COVID-19, there is more to learn, including how long immunity might last.

Dr. Winokur says is possible that annual vaccines may be needed for protection against the virus for a while.

The University of Iowa is part of a global study involving the Novavax COVID vaccine. Dr. Winokur says it's possible the data could be presented for federal review by mid-April.

She also says work continues on numerous other vaccines, as well as improvements to existing treatments such as anti-viral medications.

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