Health Experts: Vaccinated People Can Relax About Covid-19 Risks

Anthony Fauci, Chief Medical Advisor of the White House Said He Absent He goes to restaurants and cinemas, even if he is vaccinated.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention To tell Vaccinated people should be obscured indoors and avoid large gatherings. The press reports:Breakthrough infectious diseaseOf Covid-19 in full vaccination. “

All of this may seem that vaccination alone is not enough to free people from the fear of getting sick and the precautions they have taken to avoid the coronavirus in the past year. There is sex. So I asked an expert who discussed covid-related precautions through the pandemic: how worried about your personal safety after being vaccinated?

Their reaction was almost unanimous. They are no longer so worried, if any, about their personal risk of getting Covid-19. Now that I’ve been vaccinated, some have talked about going to restaurants and cinemas, interacting with friends and family, and having older relatives visit for long periods of time.

“I’m not particularly worried about getting sick myself,” Tara Smith, an epidemiologist at Kent State University, told me. “I know that if you get infected for some reason, you are less likely to develop serious symptoms.”

But over time, they see less need for even those concerns about others.

“It’s about protecting others. Immunization makes me inherently safe,” Harvard epidemiologist William Hanage told me. “There is also accumulating evidence that breakthrough cases are unlikely to be infected (low viral load), so vaccination has already helped me protect others. But I also intend to continue to act in line with lower contact rates throughout the community. I feel that the need for it is less and less as more and more are protected by vaccination. “

As immunization rates rise and new daily cases and deaths decrease, experts said people should feel more comfortable relieving preventative measures and returning the world to its pre-pandemic era. .. It may happen sooner than you think — Israeli experience It suggests that when about 60% of the population is vaccinated, cases may begin to plummet persistently. This could be just a month or two away in the United States.And with 46 percent Percentage of Americans taking one dose so far, in the United States Already beginning to decline..

As more people get vaccinated, it is wise to keep hiding and avoiding large gatherings. Vaccinated people also share their stories and encourage friends and family to be vaccinated. But that’s not because the vaccinated person is in trouble. Even with the spread of the variant, the consensus among experts is that vaccinated people should not be too worried about their own risks of Covid-19.

Vaccines are really very good for your personal safety

The clinical and real-world evidence of vaccines is now fairly clear: they are very effective in protecting people from Covid-19.

The clinical trial put a two-shot Effectiveness of Moderna and Pfizer / BioNTech vaccines One shot at 95% or more Johnson & Johnson Vaccine At over 70 percent. All three vaccines Risk of hospitalization and death To almost zero.

Real-world evidence confirms this.Data in Israel, the country with the most advanced vaccination campaigns show The Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine is more than 90% effective in preventing infectious diseases and is even more effective in stopping symptomatological diseases, hospitalizations and deaths. This can be seen in the country’s overall statistics. After Israel reopened its economy almost completely in March, after the majority of the population received at least one dose New Covid-19 cases daily It decreased by more than 95%.And Daily death Currently it is a single digit and in some cases zero.

Studies also show vaccines Effective against coronavirus mutants It has been discovered so far. Some varieties appear to be able to evade immunity, but the vaccine is so powerful that it ultimately overwhelms and defeats the varieties.

It is this evidence that convinced experts that the vaccine would stop worrying about their own Covid-19 risk. “I was completely vaccinated and resumed normal activity,” Monica Gandhi, an infectious disease doctor at the University of California, San Francisco, told me. “I ate indoors, went to the first cinema, and went to the bar when I got the chance!”

The reduction in concern also applies to others who have been vaccinated. Smith talked about having a fully vaccinated in-law visit this weekend — “I met them in person for the first time since December 2019.”

Among the vaccinated people, there were some groundbreaking Covid-19 cases.But those people Tend to be It is a mild infection that is unlikely to be transmitted and is far from common. “This is less than 0.01 percent of vaccination,” Akiko Iwasaki, an immunologist at Yale University School of Medicine, told me. CDC data citation.. “Very rare!”

As long as some experts are still playing safely, they cited a lack of attention and interest in certain activities.

“I eat out, but still only outdoors. I want to be completely relaxed for a restaurant dining experience. For me, I’m with people who don’t know to take off their masks and eat. I feel it’s the safest outside, “Carsten Bibin’s Domingo, an epidemiologist at the University of California, San Francisco, told me. “I’ve never been to bars, concerts or theaters, but that probably reflects the fact that I’m a pretty boring person.”

Some have acknowledged that their continued attention is a habit that needs to be broken. A year after worrying about the virus, it will take some time to return to the pre-pandemic spirit. “I’m not too worried about my safety,” Jorge Salinas, an epidemiologist at the University of Iowa, told me. “I think it’s mainly a matter of habit. I think it’s okay to go back to the restaurant, but I’m still taking out. But anyone who feels vaccinated and ready. I think it’s safe to vaccinate in most places. “

Ongoing precautions are really to protect others

One reason experts have consistently cited continuous precautions is the need to protect unvaccinated people. “I have an unvaccinated 7-year-old kid at home, so I’m probably refraining from working indoors for now,” Smith said. “The risk of us catching something and sending it to him is low, but after all, by being careful avoiding indoor venues, dinner at the cinema or restaurant when there are great options at home. Seems not worth it. Theater and takeaway meals. Once everyone is vaccinated, they return to our rotation. “

Several recent studies have shown that vaccinated people can reduce the chances of spreading the virus to others. CDC Summary One such real-world study of the Pfizer / BioNTech and Moderna vaccines has shown that the vaccine blocks not only symptoms but also general infection, and thus infection.

The results showed that the risk of infection was reduced by 90% more than 2 weeks after vaccination, following the second dose of vaccine (recommended number of doses). After a single dose of either vaccine, participants’ risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection was reduced by 80% more than 2 weeks after vaccination.

But in the typical cautious world of science and public health, experts look at a little more research and data before declaring that vaccinated people can throw away their masks and gather in large numbers indoors. I think I want to do. (Some experts also said that after such measures, it may continue to mask and avoid crowded indoor spaces during the flu season. It seemed to be crushed Influenza for the past year. )

Even if the vaccine proves to reduce infection, it is safer for everyone who can get the vaccine to get an injection. And as more people get their shots, it’s also safer to stick to some precautions for them.

To that end, experts recommended monitoring some future figures, such as vaccination rates, new daily cases or hospitalizations. When vaccination rates rise and exceed 50% or 60% at the local level, vaccinated people go out with much more confidence without worrying about the possibility of infecting others. I can. Also, as cases and hospitalizations decrease, vaccinated people can be confident that the virus is not as high. This makes it even less likely to get infected and spread.

In the meantime, those who are already vaccinated can help speed up the process by encouraging friends, family and peers to be vaccinated.Research Consistently Performance Approximately one in three unvaccinated people wait for others to get the first vaccine before vaccination. Therefore, sharing the story of vaccination can give people the momentum they need.

“I am vaccinated, but I am very aware that many have not yet been vaccinated,” said Saskia Popescu, an epidemiologist at George Mason University. “So I’m still paying attention to wearing a mask when I’m out for public affairs or interacting with a server. [and] I’m not too worried about the risk of getting sick, but when I go to an outdoor restaurant, there are other patrons. “