The caveat is in some states there will be herd immunity and in others not. We are entering into uncharted territory where some states will be hobbled for years and others will be moving forward. In a lot of ways states with low vaccination rates are going to suffer economically and lose businesses.
North Carolina originally thought they would hit herd immunity in June. With the reduced numbers of people showing up to be vaccinated the projected date is now at the end of August. And this is assuming the reduced vaccination rate stays steady and does not drop further.
Im not sure we’ll ever reach herd immunity as a nation. It seems to be a state to state issue. The irony is that all of the baby boomers have that polio scar on their shoulder and they wear it like a badge of honor. Now we have no more polio. The historical precedent is right there in front of everyone’s face but we cannot rise to the occasion as Americans in these times.
So basically the only differences between Emergency Use Authorization and Full Approval is that 6 months of Phase 3 follow-up data rather than 2 months is required, a larger amount of paperwork must be submitted, and the approval process will take several months rather than 20 days. So basically not all that much difference. Pfizer seeks full FDA approval for COVID-19 vaccine beyond current emergency use The company said it has delivered more than 170 million doses in the U.S. https://abcnews.go.com/Health/pfizer-seeks-full-fda-approval-covid-19-vaccine/story?id=77549532 Pfizer and partner BioNTech announced they are starting the process to seek full Food and Drug Administration approval in the U.S. for their COVID-19 vaccine. Since December, their vaccine has been distributed in the U.S. under an "emergency use authorization," which is a distinct regulatory status reserved for emergency situations, such as a pandemic. Pfizer is the first COVID vaccine maker to request full approval in the U.S., and it will likely take several months for the FDA to review additional data and make an approval decision. As Pfizer submits the required data for full Biologics License Application (BLA) approval, the FDA will take several months to review the full set of data before granting it. This submission shows Pfizer believes it has enough effectiveness and safety data to meet the stringent Biologics License Application (BLA) requirements, which includes at least six months of safety data from a majority of the volunteers in a large, Phase 3 trial. The regulatory requirements for the current emergency authorization required only two months of safety data. Vaccine specialists say that any safety problems from a vaccine are likely to arise shortly after injection. “We are proud of the tremendous progress we’ve made since December in delivering vaccines to millions of Americans, in collaboration with the U.S. Government,” Albert Bourla, Pfizer Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, said in a statement Friday. “We look forward to working with the FDA to complete this rolling submission and support their review, with the goal of securing full regulatory approval of the vaccine in the coming months.” Pfizer said it has delivered more than 170 million doses in the U.S. "... the BLA submission is an important cornerstone of achieving long-term herd immunity and containing COVID-19 in the future,” Ugur Sahin, M.D., CEO and Co-founder of BioNTech, said in a statement. “We are pleased to work with U.S. regulators to seek approval of our COVID-19 vaccine based on our pivotal Phase 3 trial and follow-up data.” Along with Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 vaccines were previously given emergency use authorization. Moderna announced Thursday that it plans to start the BLA process later in May. Companies were always expected to formally submit for approval, rather than emergency authorization, once they hit the six-month safety requirement. As more Americans get vaccinated and cases decline in the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has updated its guidelines for mask-wearing outdoors, small group gatherings and more. Many states and cities have also quickly reversed strict lockdown policies. In New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced the easement of most restrictions, while New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said he expects the city to be fully open by July 1. "After a long and incredibly difficult fight, New York state is winning the war against COVID-19, and that means it's time to loosen some restrictions put in place to protect the public health and help our local businesses," Cuomo said last week. Since the pandemic began, more than 32 million Americans have been diagnosed with COVID-19, according to a count kept by Johns Hopkins University. Of those, at least 580,061 deaths have been reported.
Sinopharm: Chinese Covid vaccine gets WHO emergency approval BBC - https://tinyurl.com/y6abcvcm The World Health Organization (WHO) has granted emergency approval for a Covid vaccine made by Chinese state-owned company Sinopharm. It is the first vaccine developed by a non-Western country to get WHO backing. The vaccine has already been given to millions of people in China and elsewhere. The WHO had previously only approved the vaccines made by Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson and Moderna. But individual health regulators in various countries - especially poorer ones in Africa, Latin America and Asia - have approved Chinese jabs for emergency use. With little data released internationally early on, the effectiveness of the various Chinese vaccines has long been uncertain. But the WHO on Friday said it had validated the "safety, efficacy and quality" of the Sinopharm jab developed by the Beijing Institute of Biological Products. The WHO said the addition of the vaccine had "the potential to rapidly accelerate Covid-19 vaccine access for countries seeking to protect health workers and populations at risk". It is recommending that the vaccine be administered in two doses to those aged 18 and over. A decision is expected in the coming days on another Chinese vaccine developed by Sinovac, while Russia's Sputnik vaccine is under assessment. Why does WHO backing matter? The green light from the global health body is a guideline for national regulators that a vaccine is safe and effective. WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said it would give countries "confidence to expedite their own regulatory approval". It also means that the vaccine can be used in the global Covax programme, which was set up last year to try to ensure fair access to vaccines among rich and poor nations. The decision to list the Chinese vaccine for emergency use is expected to give a substantial boost to the scheme, which has been struggling with supply problems. Prior to the WHO approval, the Sinopharm vaccine was already being widely used, with an estimated 65 million doses administered, according to reports. In addition to China, countries already using the vaccine include the UAE, Pakistan and Hungary. The decision on Friday to approve the vaccine for emergency use was made by the WHO's technical advisory group, which reviewed the latest clinical data and manufacturing practices. It said the vaccine's efficacy for symptomatic and hospitalised cases of Covid-19 was estimated to be 79%. The WHO noted that few adults over the age of 60 were included in clinical trials, so efficacy could not be estimated for this age group. But it said there was no reason to think that the vaccine would act differently in older recipients. The health body is yet to reach a decision on China's Sinovac vaccine. WHO experts on Friday said they were awaiting additional information before they could make a recommendation. Millions of doses of that vaccine have also already been shipped to a number of countries, which have permitted its emergency usage. One of the Chinese vaccines' main advantages is that they can be stored in a standard refrigerator at 2-8 degrees Celsius, like the AstraZeneca vaccine. The WHO said these "easy storage requirements" made the Sinopharm vaccine "highly suitable for low-resource settings". How do the Chinese shots work? The two Chinese vaccines differ significantly from some of the other Covid vaccines currently in use, especially those by Pfizer and Moderna. Developed in a more traditional way, they are so-called inactivated vaccines, which means they use killed viral particles to expose the immune system to the virus without risking a serious disease response. (Chart with vaccine information in article) By comparison, the BioNtech/Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are mRNA vaccines. This means part of the coronavirus' genetic code is injected into the body, training the immune system how to respond to it. The UK's AstraZeneca vaccine is yet another type of vaccine where a version of a common cold virus from chimpanzees is modified to contain genetic material shared by the coronavirus. Once injected, it teaches the immune system how to fight the real virus. BioNTech/Pfizer and Moderna have an efficacy rate of around 90% or higher, while the AstraZeneca jab is thought to be around 76%. In April, China's top disease control official said the efficacy of the country's Covid vaccines was low, although he later insisted his comments had been misinterpreted.
Always amazing how willing the WHO and the media are to give the chinese vaccines a light glossing over. "It said the vaccine's efficacy for symptomatic and hospitalised cases of Covid-19 was estimated to be 79%." What does that mean exactly? "The WHO noted that few adults over the age of 60 were included in clinical trials, so efficacy could not be estimated for this age group. But it said there was no reason to think that the vaccine would act differently in older recipients." I see. So the WHO did not require a trial that included large numbers of over 60 but will nevertheless approve its use for them and go ahead and conclude that "there is no reason to think that vaccine would act differently in older recipients." Yeh, okay,, whatever. Versus western trials and approvals where the regulators and the researchers start with the assumption - based on knowledge and history- that different groups respond differently to vaccines and pharmaceuticals so if they have not conducted tests spefically on those groups the vaccine/drug is not approved for those groups. Whatever. Nevermind. CHINA owns the WHO and so they could be injecting skunk piss and it would be approved. There is reason to believe their vaccine works to some degree though. Both the sinopharm and the sinovac. They are just basic old school vaccines where you culture the virus and kill it and inject remnants to trigger antibodies. If the third world loves it, go for it. Problem is some of them are not loving it. Only works so-so. I say again and again that the US should be testing the Chinese and Ruskie vaccines as a service to the world- minimum. Instead we just give billions to WHO which will go ahead use that money to purchase billions of chinese marginal vaccines. And the 4 billion we gave to covax is about to become 100 billion because allegedly we have responsibilities to the world but those responsibilities apparently do not include direct testing of the shiite that we are funding and foisting upon the world via covax. set flame/off.
Yeah, this is complete bullshit. No one really knows how effective the Chinese vaccines really are. The incompleteness of the data interestingly is missing the vulnerable cohort to Covid.
Things are getting kind of jiggy and twitchy in "the world's most vaccinated country." There is this article, and Bloomberg says that 37% of the new infections appear to be among people who have been vaccinated twice. That may sound like something unexpected has happened or shiite the bed. Not really. They have been using low-effectively rated vaccines Astrazenica and Sinopharm so these infections are implied in the numbers. Even the American and European vaccines are a little sketchy in their statements about re-infections versus deaths and hospitalizations. I don't think the AZ vaccine is the one that the Americans are reviewing for approval and some was sent to Canada, nor is it the one that Europe has been using or fighting over anyway. It is one of the brand X astrazenica vaccines that they are co-developing with India. Not sure how good that or the sinopharm one were or are that good to begin with. I do think the Canadians have received or are scheduled to receive some of the Indian vaccine soon. Take home message: You gonna have re-infections with the vaccines. It is implied in the numbers, but probably should expect even more with the marginal vaccines. Deaths along with re-infections would be an ultra-bad development although some patients are pretty far gone for other health reasons and no one is saying that even the best vaccine is a cure for death. Having said all that, it does seem as though a competent vaccine should be cutting back on any surging even if some infections arise. "Surging" among a highly vaccinated population does not have a good look to it. Quite possibly one or both of their vaccines suck. Seychelles setback: Most-vaccinated country tightens restrictions as coronavirus cases surge https://thepointsguy.com/news/seychelles-shutdown-covid/
Many of the vaccinated in Seychelles have been vaccinated with the Chinese vaccine -- which has been proven to be worthless in Brazil & other countries. "More than 60% of Seychelles residents have received two vaccine doses, but questions remain about Sinopharm, a Chinese vaccine brand that, as of mid-April, had been administered to 59% of recipients, Bloomberg reports." Seychelles setback: Most-vaccinated country tightens restrictions as coronavirus cases surge https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/me...ctions-as-coronavirus-cases-surge/ar-BB1gvgZDhttps://www.msn.com/en-us/health/me...ctions-as-coronavirus-cases-surge/ar-BB1gvgZD
Yeh, I got that. I will say again though that people need to ask themselves "wtf should I expect" when a vaccine is approved as having (let's be generous here) 70% for some of the American ones and 95% effective against hospitalization or death. There is this continuous "oh shit, I just read an article that someone who got the shots got covid again" type of crapola and drama going on. That is implied in the data from the get go even amongh the American vaccines. They need to learn how math works. But then, mixed in with that are cases where we do not have any good data - such as chinese and russian vaccines- so they are not even far enough along to be having the high quality problem of their vaccines only being 70-90% effective as the Americans and Europeans have. Could just be skunk piss. Probably isnt even the 50% effective that WHO/COVAX is willing to assign to them for gawd knows what reasons.