On Monday, July 5, the Israeli health authorities stated that new studies show that the Pfizer vaccine is less effective than previously thought against coronary heart disease, writes Haaretz.
After Israel has introduced reduced infection control measures, the delta variant has ravaged the country.
The spread of the delta variant is one of the reasons why the new surveys show a reduction to 64 per cent protection. This is considerably lower than the 96 per cent that the same health authorities stated earlier this year.
– VACCINE RESEARCHER: Even Fossum, vaccine researcher at Oslo University Hospital, Rikshospitalet. Photo: Sverre Saabye / TV 2
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– Not really that low
Vaccine researcher, Even Fossum, on the other hand, believes that people should not be intimidated by a seemingly low number.
– 64 percent is not really that low. An annual flu vaccine is around 50 percent, so 64 is still a good number, he says.
He believes that many may be blind to the fact that there is a reduction, but that it is important to understand that in practice it will not have major consequences.
– People should still be vaccinated, as the most important thing is that you are still protected against a serious course of the disease, he says.
Still protected from serious illness
Because even though there is a sharp reduction in the protection percentage, Israel points out that the protection against serious illness is still as high as 93 percent.
The Ministry of Health in Israel therefore refrained from recommending administering a third dose of the vaccine at this stage.
– It is important to distinguish between infection in general and serious illness. That more people in the population become infected has little to say when you get further in the vaccination process, Fossum says to TV 2.
– PFIZER: Israel has vaccinated large sections of the population with the Pfizer vaccine. Photo: Jack Guez / AFP
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He points out that it is the severity that makes whether this is a disease we can live with in society, in the same way as with the common flu.
– If the corona changes, with the vaccination process, from being a serious disease to giving weaker symptoms, that is what is most important.
Solberg regrets this corona measure the most
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Why does Israel know?
When asked why Israel has access to such surveys and figures before others, Fossum explains that they were out early to get a large part of the population vaccinated.
– Israel got through an agreement with Pfizer so they got access to a lot of vaccines very quickly. That makes it interesting to follow Israel since they were out quickly, he says.
On the other hand, he believes that other countries have an equal – if not greater – opportunity to complete the vaccination.
– Israel has quickly reached a certain level, but they are struggling to increase after this. Both Finland, Denmark and Norway are well placed to go past Israel on vaccination in the population, says Fossum.
– More or less normal in the autumn
Researcher at the University of Oslo, Gunnveig Grødeland, tells TV 2 that new variants can affect further reopening.
Especially if the vaccines can still have over 90 percent protection for serious illness.
– SENIOR RESEARCHER: Gunnveig Grødeland, Senior researcher and leader of the research group influenza and adaptive immunity, University of Oslo and Oslo University Hospital. Photo: Rune Blekken / TV 2
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– As time goes on, we will get more data on the vaccines, which can lead to us being able to relax more. It depends on which variants are circulating, but there are good results in the mRNA vaccines reducing the degree of disease.
She therefore believes there is reason for optimism.
– If the vaccines still seem to prevent serious illness with the new variants as well, there is reason to believe that we can live more or less normally until the autumn, says Grødeland.
Nakstad makes reservations
Assistant director of the Norwegian Directorate of Health, Espen Rostrup Nakstad, believes that the autumn is still uncertain.
– We do not yet know how many unvaccinated people can be infected by this delta variant, nor do we know if you become seriously ill. This is an uncertainty for the autumn that we must be prepared for, says Nakstad.
– SURPRISED: Assistant director of the Norwegian Directorate of Health, Espen Rostrup Nakstad, says he is surprised by the figures from Israel. Photo: Berit Roald / NTB
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He believes that at the end of September or the beginning of October we will be able to get a decision, as we will then get the answer to whether the population’s immunity is good enough.
– It will be crucial because if the population’s immunity is good, this virus will not spread so much in Norway, we will not have such big problems with it at all and can live very normally.
Nakstad, on the other hand, says that there may also be a scenario that it may take longer before we return to normal.
– Should we get a lot of infection among unvaccinated age groups that give serious cases of disease, then this will be something we have to deal with still throughout the autumn and into next year, Nakstad says to TV 2.
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