Nursing homes should see ‘some indication’ as early as this week that vaccines are having an effect, ” says Gottlieb.

by

Former head of the Food and Drug Administration Scott Gottlieb said on Sunday that nursing homes where vaccinations for COVID-19 have begun are likely to see a drop in the number of new cases within days.

Speaking to CBS’s “ Face the Nation, ” Gottlieb noted that vaccines typically take about a week to take effect and provide immunity to viruses, and said that, as a result, many long-term care facilities for the elderly increase their numbers. would increase. fall quickly.

“We will begin to see an indication that the vaccines are likely to be effective already, perhaps as early as this week, because we know that the immunity will start to work about a week after vaccination,” said Gottlieb. “So that will be reflected in the mortality trends with COVID, but it’s coming late in the season.”

He noted that older patients have a more urgent need for a second dose of the vaccine to provide full immunity to the virus, while younger people have shown stronger immunity after just one dose.

However, the pace of the first dose distribution, Gottlieb said Sunday, was slower than officials had hoped.

“The pace is slower than what was reported. I think it is probably realistic to think the pace will be a little slower, especially as we try to go through hard-to-vaccinate populations next month,” he told host Margaret. Brennan.

“I suspect more than a million have been vaccinated. There is a delay in reporting. But the idea that we will have 20 million vaccines and vaccinations by the end of the year is probably not realistic at this point,” Gottlieb continued.

State officials, including Michigan Gov. Gretchen WhitmerGretchen WhitmerSunday Shows Preview: COVID-19 Relief Awaiting Trump’s Signature; Michigan Government Continues Vaccination to Reopen High Schools, Indoor Entertainment Amid Stabilizing Coronavirus Figures Michigan Restores Pandemic-Related Moratorium on Water Shutdowns MORE (D), have criticized the federal government for delays in the distribution process for the COVID-19 vaccine in recent days, calls that have led to the highest-ranking logistics officer responsible for the rollout, Army General Gustave Perna, apologizing for a ‘miscommunication’. which he said had led states to be told they would be getting more doses of the vaccine than were actually available.

“I accept responsibility for the miscommunication,” Perna said last Saturday. So to the governors and the governor’s staff; please accept my personal apologies. If this has been disruptive to your decision making and to your conversations with the people of your great state, I will do everything I can to make it right.

.Source