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People may be less likely to abide by coronavirus lockdown rules after being vaccinated, a leading behavior specialist has said.
Professor Susan Michie, director of the Center for Behavior Change at UCL, cited evidence from previous vaccine deployments, recent national surveys suggesting people would be less likely to obey the rules, and evidence from Israel, which has the highest Covid vaccination rate in the world. , indicating that this may be the case.
“The problem is that as the vaccination program unfolds and more and more people get vaccinated and see other people in their community getting vaccinated, people are at risk of letting their guard down.” , she told BBC Radio 4’s Today program.
She referred to evidence of the deployment of the Lyme disease and influenza vaccine where those vaccinated were less likely to adhere to preventative behaviors, as well as national surveys in December in which 29% of people said after having been vaccinated, they would adhere less strictly and 11% said they would not follow the rules.
She also cited Israel’s assessment of its Covid vaccine deployment – the fastest in the world – where there appeared to be an increase in infections during the deployment. “The authors interpreted this to perhaps indicate that people weren’t really following the rules,” Michie said.
But she noted that there had been “really, really high membership levels” in the UK and there was no expectation of a sharp decrease in social distancing.
“But people may think they’re more immune than they are,” she says. “Because we still don’t know what immunity the different vaccines give, [or] how long will it last, [and] there is also a question mark about the decrease in contagiousness.
Michie said: “This is about getting the message across that we absolutely need to get people vaccinated so that we can start lifting the restrictions, but that doesn’t mean people can afford to let go of theirs right now. keep.”
Professor Anthony Harnden, vice-chair of the Joint Committee on Vaccines and Immunization, echoed the message. “Right now we still have to be careful and obey the rules and I don’t think kissing grandchildren is allowed.”
Professor Jonathan Van-Tam, deputy chief medical officer for England, has urged the public not to be lulled into a false sense of security as vaccine rollout accelerates.
At a Downing Street briefing on Friday, Van-Tam showed what he called “quite disappointing” slides showing an increase in coronavirus cases in parts of the country, including the Midlands and parts of the coast west of England.
In Tamworth, one of the areas in England where the case rate is rising, district and county councils are urging people to “do their part to fight Covid”.
Speaking to Today, council chief Jeremy Oates said people could work out of necessity or without knowing they had the virus, and that the test uptake was low in the region.
“The people of Tamworth are afraid to get tested because they don’t want to know they have the virus,” he said. “They are also afraid that if they test positive they will not be able to go to work. It is therefore a question of disseminating the messages that really exist [some] support there… It’s not the people breaking the rules, it’s in the workplace.
Izzi Seccombe, Head of Warwickshire County Council, said: “We believe his employees in the work environment and supermarkets then take him home.
“There is great hope that we are seeing the end of the tunnel. It changes people’s behavior and I think that’s where we are. “
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