CDC Study Says COVID-19 May Spread In Vaccinees

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NEW YORK – A new study of inmates in Texas prisons provides more evidence that the coronavirus can spread even in groups where most people are vaccinated.

A COVID-19 outbreak at a federal prison in July and August infected 172 male inmates in two prison housing units, according to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released Tuesday.

About 80% of the detainees in the units had been vaccinated. Over 90% of unvaccinated inmates eventually became infected, as did 70% of fully vaccinated inmates.

However, serious illness was more common among the unvaccinated. The hospitalization rate was almost 10 times higher for them compared to those who received the vaccines.

It echoes research into a July outbreak in Provincetown, Massachusetts, where several hundred people were infected – about three-quarters of whom were fully vaccinated.

Reports like these have prompted health officials to redouble their efforts to ensure that even those vaccinated wear masks and take other precautions. They believe the delta variant, a version of the coronavirus that spreads more easily, and possibly waning immunity, could play a role.

The authors did not identify the prison, but media reports in July detailed an outbreak similar in size to the federal prison in Texarkana.

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