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SALT LAKE CITY – Almost half of Utahns could now be immune to COVID-19, a senior doctor from the region’s largest health system said on Friday as state health officials reported 651 new cases of the virus and 17 more deaths and a third vaccine is close to receiving federal approval.
The number of residents who have been vaccinated against or contracted the virus could reach 70% by June or July, Dr Mark Briesacher, chief medical officer of Intermountain Healthcare, told reporters at a conference virtual press.
Estimates suggest that it will take between 70% and 90% of a population to acquire the antibodies needed to fight COVID-19 before herd immunity is achieved. But the World Health Organization and other experts say the level varies depending on the disease and has not been established for the virus,
“It’s a bit of a complicated question, because it’s actually based on a combination of facts and assumptions. What are the facts? We know 180,000 Utahns have had COVID-19 in the past 90 days. We know 750,000 have been vaccinated, ”Briesacher said.
That’s about 30% of the Utahn, “a great place,” he said. But assuming there were also residents who caught the virus but never had any symptoms and therefore went undiagnosed, “we’re probably between 40% and 50% immune and I could see that it increased from 50% to 60% in April-May, and to about 70% in June-July. “
Third vaccine could start arriving in Utah next week
A third vaccine, from Johnson & Johnson, is expected to be cleared for emergency use as early as Saturday after receiving approval from a federal Food and Drug Administration advisory committee on Friday. The two vaccines currently approved for use in the United States, Pfizer and Moderna, require a booster injection.
Governor Spencer Cox welcomed the news.
“So many people have suffered from this pandemic,” Cox said in a statement. “A third licensed vaccine tells me that even in some of our darkest times, miracles still happen. It is a testament to modern research, science, public health and medicine. “
The governor said: “We are in a race to save as many lives as possible with vaccines. This vaccine will do that. Remember that all three vaccines are safe and effective. You can be sure that one of them will protect you and those around you from COVID-19. “
Cox, who told reporters during his weekly coronavirus briefing Thursday that the federal government has approved more than 20,000 doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine for the state, said Utahns should not hesitate to get the new vaccine even if its efficiency rates are not. t quite as high as for Pfizer and Moderna.
“We have never branded vaccines before,” the governor said, adding that what is important is to prevent serious illnesses that require hospitalization and death from COVID-19, which the Johnson & Johnson vaccine seems. be 100% effective in stopping.
The governor said Johnson & Johnson’s efficacy rate, around 66% when moderate cases are included compared to over 90% for other vaccines, is still “unbelievably good.” These numbers are amazing and by the way, it has been tested against other variations which may have brought those numbers down a bit. “
Briesacher also said the Utahns shouldn’t be worried about the shot they get.
“When you are eligible, go to a place that works best for you and get vaccinated. Don’t worry which manufacturer it is because in the end they are all very effective “against severe cases of viruses,” he said.
Herd immunity is coming but for now ‘hang in there’
The doctor warned that to achieve 70% immunity in the coming months, the vaccines would need to remain effective – along with the antibodies generated by COVID-19 – against new, more transmissible and possibly more deadly variants of the virus. that continue. emerge.
“But overall, I think that’s why we as state leaders and many other health actors – certainly my peers in other health systems – are optimistic about where we are today,” he said, adding that doesn’t mean it’s time to relax. on public health mandates that include wearing masks, social distancing and crowd avoidance.
“As our immunity grows, we will come to a point where we can and will relax these restrictions on public gatherings. And I think wearing a mask will become less important in the future. But I think today’s message is to hang on.
Briesacher’s comments echo a new state-wide health order in effect until March 25 that would lift the mask’s mandate in counties designated as having low COVID-19 transmission rates once the state will have received 1,633,000 first doses of the vaccine from the federal government, or about 70% of adults in the state.
The governor said Thursday that he now expects every adult in Utah who wants to be vaccinated to be able to do so by the end of April, a month ahead of schedule. “There is an end in sight,” he said in his weekly COVID-19 update.
On Thursday, Utahns aged 16 and over with specified medical conditions became eligible to receive vaccines, days before the originally set March 1 date. They join healthcare workers, first responders, residents and staff of long-term care facilities, K-12 teachers and school staff and Utahns 65 and over on the list of ‘eligibility.
Information about scheduling immunizations provided by Utah’s 13 local health departments, federally designed pharmacies, and a state contractor can be found at cornoavirus.utah.gov. In Salt Lake County, the health department is phasing in people with comorbidities through Monday based on age.
Latest Utah COVID-19 Statistics
The Utah Department of Health said on Friday that an additional 22,092 doses of the vaccine had been administered in Utah for a total of 682,536, a number lower than Briesacher’s estimate because there is a delay in the notification to the State.
Utah has recorded 370,084 positive cases, including the 651 reported on Friday. The seven-day moving average for positive COVID-19 tests is 694 per day, and 5,498 Utahns have been tested and 15,599 other tests performed since Thursday.
The state’s seven-day moving average for percent positivity is 5.6% if all tests are counted, Utah’s new preferred method, and 12.3% if multiple tests by an individual at during the last 90 days are excluded. Currently, 231 people are hospitalized with the virus in Utah.
Utah’s death toll is 1,907 with the 17 deaths reported Friday, including eight that occurred before Feb.5. Newly reported deaths are:
- Washington County man, aged 65 to 84, residing in long-term care facility
- Utah County man, over 85, not hospitalized
- Salt Lake County man, aged 45 to 64, residing in long-term care facility
- Salt Lake County man, aged 65 to 84, residing in long-term care facility
- Salt Lake County man, over 85, out of hospital
- Iron County man, aged 45 to 64, not hospitalized
- Salt Lake County man, over 85, residing in long-term care facility
- Weber County man, over 85, not hospitalized
- Salt Lake County man, aged 45 to 64, hospitalized at time of death
- A man from Tooele County, aged 45 to 64, not hospitalized
- Uintah County woman, over 85, resident in long-term care facility
- Salt Lake County woman, aged 65 to 84, resident in long-term care facility
- Salt Lake County woman, over 85, resident in long-term care facility
- Salt Lake County woman, over 85, resident in long-term care facility
- Salt Lake County woman, aged 65 to 84, resident in long-term care facility
- Weber County woman, over 85, not hospitalized
- Woman from Utah County, aged 45 to 64, not hospitalized
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