{"id":282025,"date":"2021-06-23T20:55:48","date_gmt":"2021-06-23T17:55:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/the-delta-variant-is-moving-the-goalposts-for-canadas-vaccination-targets\/"},"modified":"2021-06-23T20:55:48","modified_gmt":"2021-06-23T17:55:48","slug":"the-delta-variant-is-moving-the-goalposts-for-canadas-vaccination-targets","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/the-delta-variant-is-moving-the-goalposts-for-canadas-vaccination-targets\/","title":{"rendered":"#The Delta variant is ‘moving the goalposts’ for Canada’s vaccination targets"},"content":{"rendered":"

“#The Delta variant is ‘moving the goalposts’ for Canada’s vaccination targets<\/strong>”<\/p>\n

\n Vaxx Populi: Outbreaks at a Toronto hospital and in Yukon have been linked to more infectious variants; data shows vaccines are very effective at preventing hospitalization among those who contract Delta\n <\/div>\n
\n The public\u2019s crash course in epidemiology and vaccine efficacy shows no sign of ending, more than 15 months into this pandemic. Now, even as more Canadians are fully vaccinated and provinces are lifting public health restrictions, there is a growing realization that outbreaks will occur for the foreseeable future. In particular, the Delta variant is \u201cunfortunately reshuffling the deck for us,\u201d says Dr. David Fisman, an epidemiologist at the University of Toronto.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

There are\u00a0<\/span>92 active cases of COVID-19 in Yukon<\/span><\/a>, representing nearly half of the territory\u2019s<\/span> cumulative tally since the pandemic began. \u201cCOVID-19 is now widespread throughout Yukon, primarily affecting unvaccinated people and is now present in most Yukon communities,\u201d the government <\/span>stated<\/span><\/a>\u00a0in a press release on Monday. \u201cWe expect to see many more cases over the coming weeks, especially in our unvaccinated population,\u201d said Dr. Brendan Hanley<\/a>, Yukon\u2019s chief medical officer of health. At least 35 cases have been identified as Gamma (P.1).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What makes this outbreak a reality check for the rest of the country is that Yukon has the highest vaccination rates in Canada. <\/span>Sixty-one per cent<\/span><\/a> of Yukon\u2019s entire population is fully vaccinated, with 71.4 per cent having at least one dose. If it were a country, then it could take the No. 1 spot on pretty much any vaccination list in the world (Israel has\u00a0<\/span>fully vaccinated 57 per cent<\/span><\/a> of its population with 61 per cent having at least one dose). And yet, the virus was able to spread there.<\/span><\/p>\n

RELATED:\u00a0My first dose was Pfizer. Why am I being offered Moderna for the second?<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

In late April, the Public Health Agency of Canada <\/span>presented modelling showing <\/span>that restrictions could start to be eased once 75 per cent of eligible Canadians had one dose of vaccine and 20 per cent were fully vaccinated. Canada reached that threshold<\/span> on June 19.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Two days later, Health Minister Patty Hajdu <\/span>focused her attention on a much higher benchmark during a press conference about new vaccination rules for entry into the country: \u201cWhat we do know is that Canada will be much better protected when we have a much higher rate of full vaccination. The one metric Canadians can watch for is the rate of fully vaccinated Canadians that is at least 75 per cent.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cMore infectious variants are moving the goalposts. The government is just responding to that,\u201d Fisman told <\/span>Maclean\u2019s<\/span><\/i>. He <\/span>calculates that the reproduction rate<\/span><\/a> for Delta is well above one in Ontario (meaning each case of Delta spreads that infection to more than one other person). \u201cSeventy-five per cent [of eligible residents] with a single shot would have been fine with pre-Delta variants,\u201d he says. In Britain, where Delta is now the dominant strain of SARS-CoV-2, a preprint study by Public Health England (PHE) into how well the vaccines stood against Delta <\/span>determined that <\/span>effectivenes<\/span>s against infection \u201cwas notably lower after one dose of vaccine\u201d compared to how well they withstood the older Alpha variant.<\/span><\/p>\n

RELATED:\u00a0Fully vaccinated people have gotten the Delta COVID variant. Should we be worried?<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The vaccines are deemed \u201ceffective\u201d after two doses. According to PHE, Pfizer\u2019s effectiveness fell to 87.9 per cent against Delta (from 93.4 per cent against Alpha). AstraZeneca\u2019s effectiveness dropped to 59.8 per cent against Delta (from 66.1 per cent against Alpha). Based on the current pace of vaccinations, we could reach the target of 75 per cent of eligible Canadians being fully immunized in early August, according to<\/span> data crunched <\/span><\/a>by Trevor Tombe, an economics professor at the University of Calgary.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The success of Canada\u2019s vaccination program will be measured in the number of hospitalizations and deaths. So far, vaccines have <\/span>been shown to be remarkably effective against severe COVID-19. Even though Delta is up to 50 per cent more transmissible than older variants, <\/span>research from <\/span>Public Health England shows that the vaccines are more than 90 per cent effective against hospitalization for those who contract Delta.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

RELATED:\u00a0COVID-19 in Canada: How our battle to stop the pandemic is going<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Last week, an outbreak likely linked to Delta was found at Toronto Western Hospital, involving at least four patients and three staff, some of whom had been vaccinated. \u201cI think it\u2019s important for everyone to recognize that none of the individuals who have picked up COVID have had any severe disease,\u201d Dr. Alon Vaisman, an infectious diseases physician at the University Health Network <\/span>told CP24<\/span><\/a>. \u201cThey all have been either asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic as a result of the COVID.\u201d Earlier in June, a majority of the 22 patients and staff in <\/span>another Delta-linked outbreak<\/span> at Foothills Medical Centre in Calgary experienced only mild symptoms, though one required treatment in the intensive care unit.<\/span><\/p>\n

As variants spread, Fisman\u2019s <\/span>advice<\/span><\/a> is simple: \u201cGet vaccinated. We will likely see a resurgence with Delta, but can blunt the impact with widespread vaccination.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

As Canada rolls out the country\u2019s most complex vaccination project to date, <\/i>Maclean\u2019s presents <\/i>Vaxx Populi, an ongoing series<\/a> in which Patricia Treble tackles the most pressing questions related to the new COVID-19 vaccines. Send us a question you\u2019d like answered at vaccines@macleans.ca. If you have specific questions about your own health, we recommend consulting a family doctor or the local public health authority in your area.<\/i>
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