The community of Amish, Pennsylvania, exploded last spring when it defied a state Home-based evacuation order to conduct religious services as usual. The local clinic estimated that 90 percent of households had at least one person diagnosed with NCCP, but this made it the first community in the nation to have herd immunity.
The Amish religious practices in New Holland Borough, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, have led to herd immunity, although it has not yet been proven that it is beneficial to the overall outbreak.
The clinic serving the Amish community “Parochial Medical Center” (Parochial Medical Center) administrator Hoover (Allen Hoover) said: “At that Time, the new crown pneumonia is like a tsunami hit the whole community. “
Holy kiss to greet without a mask and no social distance
Hoover observed that religious beliefs are the key to the Amish community not wearing masks, nor maintaining social distance and other Epidemic prevention measures. Last April, when Pennsylvania was still in the home to avoid the epidemic, the Amish had resumed religious rituals such as prayer; “holy kisses” (holy kisses) as a way of greeting, is most likely one of the key factors leading to the rapid spread of the epidemic.
Between late April and early May of last year, the diagnosis rate in Lancaster County exceeded 20 percent, and Hoover speculated that if enough tests were done, the Amish rate would be higher. In addition, Hoover also said that the community’s willingness to be vaccinated is not high.
Experts: Whether it will help prevent the epidemic is still unknown
But whether reaching herd immunity last year will help prevent the epidemic by this year is still unknown. Epidemiologists say that 8% of the county’s population has reached herd immunity, but holding onto the wrong idea could lead to a major outbreak.
Washington State University epidemiologist Lofgren (Eric Lofgren) explained: “Herd immunity is the state of a particular point in time, it’s not like a switch you turn on and it’s fine, immunity may still disappear.”
Hoover said, “After learning of the possibility of herd immunity, the Amish community believes that immunization measures do not apply to them. But the fact is, we should avoid being the source of the infection.”
Dowdy (David Dowdy), a professor of infectious diseases at the Johns Hopkins School of Public health, then warned, “It is unlikely that everyone in the entire community has ever been diagnosed, and as soon as someone gets sick, there is a risk of a mass outbreak of infection.”
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