About 125 fully vaccinated people in Louisiana tested positive for COVID-19 more than two weeks after their last dose.
It is no surprise that there have been a small number of “breakthrough cases”. “I think it’s in line with what you’d expect from the lawsuits,” said Dr. Joe Kanter, the state health officer.
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A recent study from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showed that the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are about 90% effective against infection once two weeks have passed since the second of two doses. According to US studies, the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine is about 72% effective against moderate to severe diseases.
Government officials are following breakthrough cases to understand coronavirus transmission among vaccinated people and whether the vaccines may not work as well against certain strains of the virus. And while breakthrough cases are rare – 126 cases among 568,968 fully vaccinated people in Louisiana equates to about 0.02%, or about 1 case in every 4,500 people vaccinated to date – they remind people who’ve had their shot still need to take precautions. taking like masking and distancing yourself in public.
“The vaccine is not a blank check to do what you want,” said Dr. Julio Figueroa, chief of infectious diseases at LSU Health New Orleans.
Breakthrough cases are sometimes diagnosed by mandatory testing before surgery or to return to work, not because vaccinated people show symptoms.
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As more people are vaccinated, the number of new breakthrough cases should decrease, Figueroa said. That’s partly because research shows that vaccinated people who still get COVID, regardless of whether they develop symptoms, have a lower viral load and are less likely to transmit the disease.
“What we want to do is drop the viral shedding of the entire population so that we have less and less transmission,” Figueroa said.
Other states and researchers are also tracking breakthrough cases, with results also suggesting it’s rare. A study from the Southwestern Medical Center at the University of Texas at Dallas found that only four of the 8,121 workers infected at least two weeks after their last dose, about 0.04%. Another found that only seven of the 14,990 workers in two California hospitals were later infected, a similar percentage.
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In Washington state, only about 100 of the 1.2 million fully vaccinated people have tested positive for the coronavirus. Most experienced mild symptoms, consistent with clinical trial results suggesting the vaccines reduce the severity of the disease. But eight of those breakthrough cases resulted in hospitalization, and two people who died were examined as breakthrough cases, according to the Washington State Department of Health; both were over 80 with other health problems.
Louisiana officials did not share data on the severity of the disease in breakthrough cases or say which vaccine the individuals received.
The CDC recommends that vaccinated people continue to wear masks in public and around unvaccinated people. Experts said these guidelines could relax as more people get the photos, but widespread vaccination is needed to provide a blanket of protection for vulnerable people.
“You want to vaccinate the population as much as possible so that you get that herd immunity,” Figueroa said. “Those sensitive people, even if they have been vaccinated, will be protected.”
Emily Woodruff covers public health for The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate as a member of the Report For America Corps.