Alabama may be just weeks away from reaching herd immunity in the fight against coronavirus.

A University of Alabama at Birmingham researcher says the ongoing vaccination effort is helping speed along efforts to get to herd immunity.

Dr. Suzanne Judd also says new data showing more people had COVID that tested positive is helping achieve this status.

"The more people that have immunity, the less the virus will spread, the safer it will be for us to interact with one another again,” Judd said.

Herd immunity is when so many people become immune to a disease that the chance it will spread becomes unlikely. The immunity can come from both vaccination and infection, and eventually protects even those who do not fall into either category.

Judd says new data at UAB shows five people had the virus for every one who tested positive.

Nationwide, the rate is 10 to one.

Judd believes that’s because of a lack of testing early on in the virus outbreak.