UK: Government Advisory Group Claims Next COVID Variant Could Kill 35% of Infected People, Recommends Pet Vaccination, Cullings

The UK government’s SAGE group has claimed in a new paper that it is a “realistic possibility” that a new COVID variant could end up with a morbidity rate of over 35%, arguing the government should consider drastic measures like the vaccination or culling of animals. The research paper, published on Friday by the UK government as part of transparency efforts, outlined a number of scenarios for the future of COVID variants. Four scenarios were considered, including the possibility of a vaccine-resistant and drug-resistant variant. The most shocking however, was “Scenario One,” which predicted a situation where a new variant causes “severe disease in a greater proportion of the population.” Death rates suggested in this scenario could be between 10%, like SARS, or even as high as 35%, like MERS.-- More...