Top Infectious Disease Expert Claims Partially Vaccinated People Are At 57 Times Higher Risk Of Death Due To COVID19

A leading infectious disease scientist from the White House in the US, Dr. Anthony Fauci has said that people who have not been fully immunized are many times more likely to be admitted to hospitals and die due to COVID19 infection. The expert has shared the data on the SARS-CoV-2 virus by the status of vaccination that has been taken from Public Health-Seattle and King County in the state of Washington. The data has revealed that people who have not been fully inoculated or have not even taken the first dose are at eight times greater risk of testing positive for COVID19. Dr. Anthony Fauci has said that such people are at 41 times higher risk of being hospitalized due to COVID19 and 57 times elevated risk of death due to the disease as compared to those who have taken both doses of COVID19 shots. He has said that estimates from the last month show how contagious the delta variant is and how efficient COVID19 shots are against the most severe complications induced by the virus. Dr. Fauci has said that COVID19 shots that are being used in the US are highly potent and free of cost and they are able to protect people and communities.

Experts who have come up with the data have compared breakthrough cases among residents of King County that have taken place when people have been diagnosed with COVID19 14 days after taking their first dose to people with COVID19 who have not taken the shots yet. Earlier experts have said that COVID19 shots do not offer 100 percent immunity from the SARS-CoV-2 virus; therefore, it means that there will be many breakthrough cases as people continue to take the shots. However, many studies have now shown that fewer than 1 percent of people who have been fully vaccinated will test positive for the dreaded virus, and even fewer people will have a severe infection even if they contract the disease. As per the latest data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), nearly 14643 people who have been fully immunized have been admitted to hospitals after contracting the virus post-vaccination. Among these people, only 4493 people have lost their lives.

Experts have said that the new data collected by the King County officials have shown that breakthrough cases are quite uncommon and COVID19 vaccines have been working well against severe problems due to the disease. Experts have said that in the last one month, around 11868 people who have not started their vaccination or have completed their vaccine regimen within 14 days have been diagnosed with the SARS-CoV-2 virus as compared to only 5640 fully vaccinated people who have been fully immunized. The rate of new daily cases among fully immunized people has been 10.7 new cases per 100000 people. On the other hand, the rate of new cases among people who have not been fully vaccinated has been 82.4 cases per 100000 people. It shows that people who have not been fully inoculated are at a 7.7 times higher risk of testing positive for the virus. Health experts have said that the risk has been further higher among not fully vaccinated residents in terms of hospitalization and death due to COVID19. They have said that nearly 543 people from King County who have not been fully immunized have been admitted to hospitals along with a rate of 8.72 cases per 100000 people each day in the last month. While around 131 people who have been fully protected have been admitted to hospitals with a rate of 0.21 cases per 100000 per day. It shows that people who are fully immunized are at 41 times lower risk of hospitalization.

Experts have said that last month, nearly 90 people have lost their lives due to COVID19 among not fully immunized people and only 26 people have succumbed to disease among those who have been fully protected with COVID19 shots. The daily rate of death due to COVID19 among not fully vaccinated people has been 2.28 deaths per 100000 people. The death rate among fully vaccinated people has been 0.04 deaths per 100000 people per day. It shows that people who have not started their vaccine regimen or have not completed their second dose within 14 days are 57 times more likely to lose their lives due to COVID19 as compared to those who have been fully immunized. As these cases, deaths, and hospitalizations have taken place in the last month, Dr. Fauci has said that the delta variant might have been a driving factor. Last, week, a report from The State Health Department has shown that all virus samples that have been sent for genetic sequencing have been found to be linked to the delta variant. It shows that the delta strain has been behind all new cases in the county.

Experts have said that the delta variant is two times more infectious as compared to other dominant strains such as the Alpha strain that has been detected in the UK for the first time. The delta variant has been found in India for the first time during the second wave of the pandemic. The Secretary of Health of Washington, Dr. Umair Shah has said that officials are quite worried about the surge in cases that have been caused by the delta strain, which is spreading rapidly among men, women, children, and elderly people. Experts have advised people to take the shots as soon as possible to protect themselves and their loved ones as COVID19 shots are the most vital tool to end the pandemic. They have said that people should adhere to COVID19 prevention guidelines such as mask-wearing and social distancing.