Dr. Fauci says coronavirus immunity may be ‘finite,’ duration remains uncertain

Dr. Fauci says coronavirus immunity may be 'finite,' duration remains uncertain Fauci has previously said there's a chance a coronavirus vaccine might not provide long-term immunity. Will Feuer CNBC

Protection from any potential coronavirus vaccine might be short-lived and could require a booster to prolong protection, White House health advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci said Monday. 

As several companies move closer to the finish line of a potential vaccine for the virus, the role of antibodies takes on even more significance as it could determine how well any vaccine works and how often someone might need to receive it, or a booster, to prolong protection.

In response to a question about how long antibodies might offer some protection against infection, Fauci said Monday “we do not know.”

“With this spike protein that’s being presented in the way that we do it with primes and in some cases boosts, we’re going to assume that there’s a degree of protection, but we have to assume that it’s going to be finite,” he added during a Q&A discussion with Dr. Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health. “It’s not going to be like a measles vaccine.”