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Four people in Oregon, who have been fully immunized with the COVID-19 vaccine, have tested positive for the coronavirus, health officials revealed Friday.
That makes Oregon one of the first states to report “ groundbreaking cases, ” which occur when people test positive for the virus at least 14 days after receiving their second dose of the vaccine.
The two vaccines approved for emergency use authorizations – Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna – are 95% effective, which means 5% of vaccinees can still get sick, which an official says is serious but not surprising.
‘[This is] not be unexpected in a vaccine which, while phenomenal, with 95% effectiveness, still means 5% can still be infected, ” Dr Patrick Allen, director of the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) said during of a press conference on Friday.
Two of the revolutionary cases are in Yamhill County, about 40 miles from Portland, and the other two are in Lane County, about 135 miles away.
Officials say all four people had little or no symptoms, which appears to support studies suggesting the vaccine may help reduce the severity of the disease.
Although the OHA was unable to provide details on the origin of these cases, their age, or when they received their last vaccine, they said 2 of the 4 cases were associated with a only place where there is a cluster.
Four people in Oregon, who were fully immunized with the COVID-19 vaccine, tested positive for the coronavirus, all of whom had mild to none symptoms. Pictured: An Oregon aged 80 or older receives a COVID-19 vaccine at the Oregon Convention Center in Portland, February 10
Both vaccines, from Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna, are 95% effective, meaning 5% of all people will get sick, so officials say there are bound to be more of these “ breakthrough cases ” ( above)
In Friday’s press conference, Dr Dean Sidelinger, the health authority’s public health official, said no vaccine offers 100% protection, which means there will be more breakthrough case.
“All of this means that we can expect to see more groundbreaking cases,” Dean Sidelinger, public health manager at the health authority.
“Vaccinating as much of Oregon as possible remains a key goal in ending the pandemic.
“ Based on what we know about vaccines for other diseases and early clinical trial data, experts believe that the COVID-19 vaccine may also help you avoid getting seriously ill, even if you do. get sick. ”
It is not yet known whether any of the four infections involved new variants of the virus from the UK, South Africa or Brazil.
The OHA is currently trying to obtain samples from these patients and send them to the CDC for testing as part of a genomic surveillance program.
Officials hope to have case data available by this week
In addition, health officials announced on Friday that the number of people receiving the COVID-19 vaccine in Oregon and the amount of doses shipped to the state had increased.
However, several vaccination sites were forced to close on Friday and Saturday due to snowy and freezing weather.
Currently, 10% of the population of Oregon has received at least a first dose of COVID-19 vaccine.
Currently, an average of 1.6 to 1.7 million Americans are vaccinated each day
A total of 38.2 million Americans – 11.6% of the population – received at least one dose while 14 million – 4.2% – received both doses
“Although they are still rare, vaccines are becoming more widely available. More and more Oregon are getting vaccinated every day, ”said Sidelinger.
Health officials announced Friday that Oregon’s weekly allowance for first doses was increasing again from 75,000 to 82,000.
“These extra doses will help ensure that our timelines stay on track and that we might even get through our senior population sooner, but it’s still too early to tell,” Allen said.
In the United States, more than 70 million doses have been shipped to the states and more than 52.8 million have been administered, according to the CDC.
A total of 38.2 million Americans – 11.6 percent of the population – received at least one dose while 14 million – 4.2 percent – received both doses.
Currently, an average of 1.6 to 1.7 million people are vaccinated each day.
Health officials say they want to reiterate the importance of getting the vaccine as soon as doses become available to you.
“The COVID-19 vaccine is safe and effective. The benefits of the vaccine far outweigh the risks of contracting COVID-19, ” Surgeon General D. Mary Giswold told the AP.
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