OmCheeto said:
If there are no glitches, my state should reach herd immunity via vaccination around the first week of July. Roughly 1/2% per day are currently receiving their second dose. As for the rest of the planet, it's anyones guess.
Lucky guss. Here in Aus there are still issues I thought was solved with the new information about efficiency of the Oxford Vaccine:
https://www.astrazeneca.com/media-c...the-primary-analysis-of-phase-iii-trials.html
One dose - 76% effective. After 12 weeks you get the second dose - 82% effective. To me the road ahead here in Aus was obvious - high priority groups get the Pfizer, of which we have enough to do 10 million people. For the rest we give one dose of the Oxford as fast as possible. Then the second dose 12 weeks later. It will probably take longer than 12 weeks to give the first dose to everyone - it is estimated October, so 3 months after that for everyone to get the second dose. Once the Novavax vaccine is manufactured it can then be rolled out - exactly when depending on how it interacts when already vaccinated with the Oxford or Pfizer and how long the immunity lasts - but I suspect next year sometime. Australia, being in a very good position, deliberately has decided to wait a while and get the data from other counties vaccine use before proceeding. And I think it was wise - we now know the most effective dosing for the Oxford vaccine. I am in the priority one group of 16 million so I may or may not get the Pfizer - personally though I would prefer the Oxford because I take strong precautions - leave the moderately more effective vaccine for those that may not be as carefull as I am.
But an immunologist here has cast doubt on it that the statistician in me is forced to acknowledge is valid:
https://healthcareworkersaustralia.com/2021/02/11/backing-up-our-gains/
'Announcement on Feb 1 of increased efficacy by spacing two doses of the AZ vaccine at least 12 weeks apart generated some interest. This post hoc analysis of the primary clinical trial data should be interpreted with caution. Post hoc analyses aim to ask a question rather than answer one. Why? Because they rely on analysing a slice of the main trial data; have greater uncertainty around estimates because numbers analysed are usually smaller and are prone to bias which may translate to inadvertently finding patterns where there are none. This sub-study provided the rationale for the UK vaccine authority’s decision to delay the interval between vaccine doses to at least 12 weeks in order to vaccinate more people. However, a quarter of a year is a long time to wait in the middle of a pandemic. This sub-study actually raised more questions than answers (as post hoc analyses often do!). Why was the efficacy of a single dose of the AZ vaccine at preventing symptomatic infection higher than two standard doses at 76% versus 63% respectively? In other words, vaccine efficacy seemed to decline with a second dose. This trial update contained an additional 5,541 people from SA, UK and Brazil but overall vaccine efficacy with two standard doses remained unchanged from the first interim study published on Dec 8 which led to approvals in several countries (i.e. 63% among 14,379 people in this update vs 62% in the first analysis). Reassuringly, there were no hospitalisations after the second vaccine dose (n=0 with vaccination vs 15 with control). These results will reassure Britons that delaying the second dose by 12 weeks has some supportive evidence. However, for the rest of us, we keenly await the release of the AZ trial predominantly from the US with >32K people where close to one quarter will be over 65 years, due to report in the next month or so. In this large trial, people are receiving 2 standard doses 28 days apart- potentially the dosing schedule we will receive if approved, hence discussions on single dosing and delayed interval dosing of 12 weeks are largely academic for Australia.'
Regardless it will likely not get us out of trouble - many restrictions will still remain here in Aus. It will be less when the Novavax vaccine is rolled out, but I personally doubt even that will do it. I fear we are in for, an admittedly lessening, level of restrictions for a few years yet, until things get back to normal.
Thanks
Bill