How well the Coronavirus vaccines fight the virus variants?

 

The United States is now dealing with the delta variant of the coronavirus, a highly contagious variant that was first identified in India in December.

As with previous variants, the delta variant has spread to many countries across the world, including, most notably, the United Kingdom, where it’s now responsible for around 99 percent of new cases.

The United States first announced it had a confirmed COVID-19 case with the delta variant in March this year. It’s now the dominating variant nationwide, making up 83 percent of all new infections in the country.

COVID-19 cases are quickly rising yet again in the United States. The average number of daily COVID-19 cases is more than 40000, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

This rise has been attributed, in part, to the delta variant being an estimated 60 percent trusted source more transmissible than the alpha variant, according to recent research.

Additionally, areas with low vaccination rates are more likely to see a surge in infections.

Low vaccine uptake driving up infections

“The unvaccinated population is at high risk for infection. If this variant continues to move quickly, especially in areas of low vaccination rates, the U.S. could see a surge in SARS-CoV-2 infection,” said Dr. Miriam Smith, chief of infectious disease at Long Island Jewish Forest Hills Teaching Hospital in Queens, New York City.

In a press briefing, she said preliminary data suggested that 99.5 percent of the people who died from COVID-19 since January were unvaccinated.

“We know that the delta variant… is currently surging in pockets of the country with low vaccination rates,” she said.

In Missouri, which has a vaccination rate of 40 percent, confirmed coronavirus infections have surged in recent weeks.

In contrast, Vermont reported only 38 cases on July 23 and currently has one of the highest vaccination rates in the country at 68 percent.

This echoes findings from a UK study trusted source that found the delta variant twice as likely to lead to hospitalization, and both the AstraZeneca-Oxford and Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccines being effective in reducing this risk.

Dr. Theodore Strange, said, “The safety and efficacy of the current vaccines are very clear. These three vaccines do work to prevent disease and the spread of disease, and they are as safe as any other vaccines that have been in use. Although some side effects have been reported, these issues are rare and treatable,”