Should fully immunized people be worried about the delta variant?

There was a recent coronavirus outbreak at a Las Vegas hospital – but none of the employees, 10 of whom were fully vaccinated, were hospitalized because of the virus.

What happened in Las Vegas?

According to Las Vegas Review-Journal, 11 employees at Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center in Las Vegas have been infected with the novel coronavirus. Of those 11, 10 of them were fully vaccinated against the virus.

• The outbreak was caused by the delta variant, which has become the dominant variant of the coronavirus in the United States, Forbes reports.

Officials said none of the employees had been hospitalized and none of them died.

• “The Centers for Disease Control have confirmed that 11 of our colleagues at Sunrise Hospital have tested positive for the delta COVID-19 variant,” Sunrise CEO Todd P Sklamberg said in a statement to the Guardian. “Everyone who tested positive is doing well and has returned to work. “
• “We want to recognize that our colleagues have recognized their own symptoms (similar to allergies or the common cold) and have chosen to be tested. There has been no exposure of our patients as our staff adhere to all PPE guidelines, masquerading at all times and wearing face shields at all patient encounters.

Why it matters

The cases come as the delta variant of the coronavirus continues to spread across the country, leading to outbreaks in several states with low vaccination rates. Health officials have suggested that vaccinations offer strong protection against the delta variant.

• “COVID-19 vaccines – which data has repeatedly shown to be safe and effective – reduce the severity of the virus and prevent hospitalizations in the rare cases of a breakthrough,” The Guardians reports, citing health officials.

That said, Forbes suggests that the Las Vegas case tells us that vaccines are not 100% successful in stopping the infection. They’ve been shown to largely stop hospitalizations and deaths, but fully vaccinated people can still get infected if they don’t take precautions. Symptoms may not be as strong, but they can still appear.

• “What all of this says, however, is don’t roll the dice over being potentially infected,” according to Forbes. “There are still a lot of people who are not vaccinated, but who act like they are. People can lie in Las Vegas and elsewhere. The idea that you can give up all other COVID-19 precautions once you’re vaccinated is full of craps, a game of craps that is. ”