And another from the same site that was interesting. 61,500 fully vaccinated New Jerseyans have now been infected with COVID-19, 43,000 since September
Thanks for finding the article. Indeed it looks like 47% of hospitalizations (not cases or deaths) currently are vaccinated based on this article from yesterday. His statement was -- “As the recent daily case counts can attest,” Murphy said. “I think it’s 47% over the past 10 days or two weeks of new admissions here, fully vaccinated, but not yet boosted.” The rise in cases among the vaccinated with Omicron -- which is vaccine evasive -- is very concerning.
Also, and I will preface this with the fact that it is anecdotal, I had lunch with the guy who handles the pandemic response here at McDill with SOCOM. I asked him if he had any data he could share regarding COVID vaccine breakthrough cases, and I shared our (yours and I) discussion on the .56% rate, and the measles conversation. He said the breakthrough number is considerably higher, as the CDC data is incomplete and there doesn't exist a good system for aggregation of that. When I asked why, since we collect all sorts of other info on cases, he just smiled and said "why, indeed".
‘Striking’ vaccine resistance in Omicron variant: Columbia University https://nypost.com/2021/12/16/columbia-university-finds-omicron-vaccine-resistance/ A new study out of Columbia University says the Omicron variant is “markedly resistant” to vaccines and boosters might not do much to help, spelling bad news for the country as Omicron spreads and COVID-19 cases rise nationally. “A striking feature of this variant is the large number of spike mutations that pose a threat to the efficacy of current COVID-19 vaccines and antibody therapies,” according to the study authored by more than 20 scientists at Columbia and the University of Hong Kong. The Omicron variant was first detected in South Africa in November and is widely believed to soon become the dominant strain in the US, eclipsing the Delta variant. The scientists express concern in the study published Wednesday that the variant’s “extensive” mutations can “greatly compromise” the vaccine, even neutralizing it. The report said the booster shots prevent some of the neutralization, but the variant “may still pose a risk” for those with their third shot. “Even a third booster shot may not adequately protect against Omicron infection,” the study said, adding it’s still smart to get a booster. The results are “in line with emerging clinical data on the Omicron variant demonstrating higher rates of reinfection and vaccine breakthroughs,” the authors said. One study recently showed Omicron is roughly 70 times more transmissible than Delta, but less severe. The new Columbia study ends with a grave warning and a call to action to the scientific community. “It is not too far-fetched to think that this [COVID-19] is now only a mutation or two away from being pan-resistant to current antibodies,” it says. “We must devise strategies that anticipate the evolutional direction of the virus and develop agents that target better conserved viral elements.” More than 5.3 people million worldwide, including more than 802,000 in the US, have died from COVID-19 as of Thursday, according to Johns Hopkins University data.
Omicron moves fast. What that means for the next few weeks. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2021-12-omicron-fast-weeks.html
Omicron largely evades immunity from past infection or two vaccine doses The study finds no evidence of Omicron having lower severity than Delta, judged by either the proportion of people testing positive who report symptoms, or by the proportion of cases seeking hospital care after infection. However, hospitalisation data remains very limited at this time.
Ouch... the information about Omicron not being less severe than Delta in this modeling study in the U.K. is bad news. The world has been hopeful based on the South Africa information showing a lower level of hospitalizations with Omicron over Delta that it would be less severe.
Omicron more likely to reinfect than Delta, no milder -study Omicron five times likelier to cause reinfections No sign milder than Delta, but some say too early to know Two-dose vaccines offer little or no Omicron protection