COVID-19 vaccines are still the strongest weapon against the highly transmissible Delta variant, an infectious disease specialist said today (July 21).
According to Dr. Rontgene Solante, the risk of getting infected with COVID-19 or having severe symptoms from the disease is low for fully vaccinated individuals.
“The data gathered from different countries wherein surges are being documented, most of those cases are those cases not vaccinated,” Solante said during the July 21 Palace briefing.
Based on data from a study conducted by the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about 99.5% of recent COVID-19 deaths occurred among unvaccinated people.
On July 19, the Department of Health (DOH) reported the Delta variant-related deaths of a 78-year-old woman from Antique and a 58-year-old woman from Manila. Both were not vaccinated against the disease.
Dr. Soumya Swaminathan, World Health Organization’s (WHO) chief scientist, said in an episode of WHO’s Science in 5 on COVID-19 that higher antibody levels must be produced due to the variant’s 97% transmissibility.
“The good news is that all of the WHO emergency use listed vaccines do protect against developing severe disease, hospitalization, and death due to the Delta variant,” Swaminathan said.
“The main goal of these vaccines is really to prevent severe disease, because what we want is for people, even if they get the infection, is for them to recover from it and not become seriously ill,” she added.
The chief scientist said vaccines may vary in efficacy ranging from 70% to 90%, but are “over 90% effective” in terms of severe disease prevention.
Solante, who is also a vaccine expert, said existing COVID-19 vaccines in the country remain effective against variants of concern such as the Delta variant.
Read more: Do OK’d vaccines work against Delta variant? Expert says yes
“Even with your CoronaVac, since it’s also active against the Alpha [variant], then it is also surmised that with the same mechanism and Alpha spike protein antibody production, then this can also withstand the Delta variant,” he said.
Current available data show that Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Moderna, Janssen, and Covaxin are effective against the Delta variant. These vaccines are included in the country’s vaccine portfolio. – Report from Sweeden Velado-Ramirez/AG- jlo
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