America has entered a whole new phase of the COVID-19 pandemic. As of January 8, 2021, over 2 million U.S. citizens have been vaccinated with the Pfizer/BioNTech’s vaccine or with the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine. Priority for vaccination will be available first to medical professionals with direct patient contact and senior citizens in nursing homes or assisted living. That having been said, it is the states who will decide the priority for the citizens within their state, not the federal government.
As reported by major media, there are some distribution glitches, but for the most part the roll out of the vaccines is going relatively smoothly. The vast majority of patients who have already been vaccinated are experiencing no major problems.
A group that does however need to be careful has been identified. It consists of people who have experienced extreme allergic reactions to flu vaccines in their past. They should check with their doctor prior to receiving one of the COVID-19 vaccines. The good news is that only six such severe side effects have been reported in the first 300,000+ Pfizer/BioNTech vaccinations. With the Moderna vaccine, people who have had cosmetic facial “filling” should discuss the situation with their doctor. A few negative reactions have occurred within this group.1
The credit for this achievement of two rapidly developed and effective vaccines in less than a year belongs to the pharmaceutical company leaders, their brilliant scientists along with the FDA who fast-tracked the process while making sure about the safety and effectiveness of the vaccines. All of this was made possible by Operation Warp Speed.
While the COVID-19 pandemic in the U.S. is still quite serious, according to the latest update from the FDA “Two different mRNA vaccines have now shown remarkable effectiveness of about 95% in preventing COVID-19 disease in adults. As the first round of vaccine recipients become eligible to receive their second dose, we want to remind the public about the importance of receiving COVID-19 vaccines according to how they’ve been authorized by the FDA in order to safely receive the level of protection observed in the large randomized trials supporting their effectiveness.”2
With the rollout of these two new vaccines we are finally at the ‘beginning of the end’ of COVID-19 pandemic, but we have many months to go until we return to what will be a new ‘normal.’ That being said, we may have an even longer way to go because COVID-19 cases in the U.S. and Europe are soaring. Hospitalizations are at a record high here in America. 3
The vast majority of the new cases in the U.S. are not serious threats to the younger and middle age people due to the low mortality rate for those age categories. But these new cases threaten the lives and future health of the vulnerable (i.e., people over 65 and/or those with pre-existing health conditions). The surge in hospitalizations in some areas is a major problem and will probably get worse until the end of January or early February.4
The CDC reports that survival rates after having Covid-19 are now extremely high. For the vast majority of people the risk of death is very low. But for those over 70 with heart disease, diabetes, immunodeficiency, or other major illnesses the risk goes up to about 1 in 20 dying. That is why about one-half of the U.S. deaths have been among residents of nursing homes and assisted living communities. People in those communities need strong protection and access to the coming vaccines before the rest of the general public. The survival rates by age group are: age 0-69 over 99.5% survival rate; age 70+: 94.6% survival rate. 5
The World Health Organization (WHO) and many other health organizations around the globe are now recommending against total economic and societal lockdowns to combat the virus. Instead, they are recommending aggressive protection of the most vulnerable within the general population. This includes elderly people in nursing homes or assisted living facilities; immunocompromised or immunosuppressed individuals of all ages; and those of any age with other health problems that make them subject to death from a severe COVID-19 case. 6
The reasons for the change in WHO’s recommendation against total lockdowns are that the economic and health consequences of the lockdowns are worse that the virus itself. It has now been shown that lockdowns create poverty and greatly exacerbate other health issues like suicides, severe mental health problems, increased drug addiction, disrupted educations, and cause major health problems because millions avoid needed check-ups or testing.7
While clearly not the end of the fight against COVID-19, the rapid approval and accelerated roll out these two vaccines certainly marks the first major step in the battle against this deadly virus. The speed with which these two vaccines were developed and approved represents a major victory for all those involved in this amazing effort!
1 www.fda.gov
2 https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/fda-statement-following-authorized-dosing-schedules-covid-19-vaccines
3 www.cdc.gov
4 Ibid “CDC”
5 Ibid “CDC”
6 https://www.who.int/
7 Ibid “WHO”
January 11, 2021
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