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You knew it was going to happen, and now it’s official. COVID-19 vaccinations could begin distribution within the next three weeks, according to WSAV in Savannah, Georgia. With the glorious two-step vaccine that’s likely to make you sick for a few days with each dose, you’ll get a COVID vaccination card:
The Defense Ministry released the first images of a COVID-19 vaccination record and vaccination kits on Wednesday.
“Everyone will receive a written card that they can put in their wallet that will tell them what they have had and when their next dose is due,” said Dr. Kelly Moore, associate director of the Coalition for Action. immunization, in a CNN report.
There is a rationale for providing the patient with a record. According to the CDC:
“For most COVID-19 vaccines, two doses of vaccine, separated by 21 or 28 days, will be needed. Since different COVID-19 vaccine products will not be interchangeable, a recipient’s second dose of vaccine must come from the same manufacturer as their first dose. “
Of course, the information about the type and date you received the vaccine could be given on a piece of paper or something less formal than a card. It is not difficult to understand how this folder is likely to be used, so if you receive the vaccine, laminate it. They were nice enough to make them the size of a wallet.
This will allow a range of businesses and services to require you to show the card in order to shop, have their hair cut, or use other services. Hotels and airlines may decide to require proof of vaccination to travel. This despite the absence of major epidemics on planes or associated with hotels.
This is insane for several reasons. First, the news regarding the immunity of recovered patients is very positive. Studies of those who have had COVID-19 show that if the antibodies provide the initial response, a long-term response of the T and B memory cells of the immune system is long lasting and offers protection against reinfection. While COVID-19 is similar to SARS, studies have shown that this long-term immune response is still active after 17 years. The good news is that the two viruses are 80% similar in structure and use the same method to get into cells.
Why should an active immune person receive a vaccine? The short answer is they don’t. The CDC and testing companies should work on an accurate test for commercial use to detect this response. If experts claim that this virus will act very differently from its close cousins, they will need an extraordinary explanation.
Then a certain percentage of the population has the same long-term immune response based on exposure to other coronaviruses. The same commercially available test for recovered patients could be administered before vaccination to see if it is needed. This is not to encourage anti-vax feeling, but if there is natural immunity, it seems that the decision to take one should be made between a patient and their doctor.
Finally, there is some rather disappointing rhetoric from the chairman of Pfizer. With everything we’ve understood about how vaccines work for decades, the statement also extends credibility. Albert Bourla said NBC data line that the drug company was “not sure” if the vaccine prevented transmission of the coronavirus, adding: “This is something that needs to be looked into.”
This begs the question of what 90% efficient means. It appears to mean that it’s effective in getting a vaccinated person to develop antibodies against COVID-19. It is difficult to understand why this would not be enough to stop transmission if it effectively stops the disease. According to the CDC, people who do not get sick with COVID-19 are not the primary drivers of infection, and a recent study in China found 300 asymptomatic cases without transmission to their nearly 2,000 close contacts.
It also appears to be something that could have been tested during testing. The COVID-19 vaccine uses new technology, but the functioning of the immune system once triggered is not. If the virus can be transmitted by a vaccinated person, these companies have developed a therapeutic vaccine and not a vaccine according to the traditional definition. Vaccines provide immunity, and people who are vaccinated act as a brake on transmission. If not, that would require another extraordinary explanation.
It will be difficult to sell a vaccine that does not change the public policies governing the way of life of many Americans at all. Masks, distances and stops will always be possible. Finding the response to possible transmission after vaccination is now Pfizer’s # 1 task.
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