Four people in Oregon, who were completely immunized with the COVID-19 vaccine, tested positive for coronavirus, health officials said Friday.
This makes Oregon one of the first states to report “discovery cases” that occur when people test positive for the virus at least 14 days after receiving the second dose of vaccine.
Both vaccines approved for emergency use permits – Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna – are 95% effective, meaning that five percent of those vaccinated can get sick, which the official says is serious, but not surprising.
‘[This is] not to be unexpected in a vaccine that, although phenomenal, with an efficiency of 95 percent, means that another five percent could be infected, “said Dr. Patrick Allen, director of the Oregon Health Authority (OHA), at a press conference on Friday
Two of the discovery cases are in Yamhill County, about 40 miles from Portland, and the other two are in Lane County, about 135 miles away.
Officials say the four people had few or no symptoms, which seems to support studies that suggest the vaccine may help reduce the severity of the disease.
While the OHA was unable to provide details on the origin of these cases, their ages or when they received the last vaccine, they said that 2 of the 4 cases are associated with a single location where there is a cluster.
Four people in Oregon who were completely immunized with the COVID-19 vaccine tested positive for coronavirus, all with mild to no symptoms. Pictured: An 80-year-old Oregon or older receives COVID-19 vaccinations at the Oregon Convention Center in Portland, February 10
Both vaccines, from Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna, are 95% effective, meaning that 5% of all people will get sick, so officials say there are likely to be more of these “discovery cases.” (above)
At Friday’s press conference, Dr. Dean Sidelinger, the health authority’s health officer, said no vaccine provides 100% protection, which means there will be more cases of discovery.
“What all this means is that we can expect to see more cases of discovery,” said Dean Sidelinger, the state health authority’s health officer.
Vaccination of as many Oregonians as possible remains a critical goal of ending the pandemic.
“Based on what we know about vaccines for other diseases and early data from clinical trials, experts believe that taking a COVID-19 vaccine can also help prevent you from getting seriously ill, even if you get sick.”
It is not yet clear whether any of the four infections involved newer variants of the virus in the UK, South Africa or Brazil.
OHA is currently trying to obtain samples from these patients and send them to the CDC for testing in a genomic surveillance program.
Officials hope to have case data available by this week
In addition, the health authority said Friday that the number of people receiving COVID-19 vaccine in Oregon and the number of doses shipped to the state have increased.
However, several vaccination sites were forced to close on Friday and Saturday due to snowy and icy weather.
Currently, 10% of the Oregon population has received at least a first dose of COVID-19 vaccine.
Currently, an average of 1.6 to 1.7 million Americans are vaccinated every day
A total of 38.2 million Americans – 11.6% of the population – received at least one dose, while 14 million – 4.2% – received both doses
Although still rare, vaccines are becoming increasingly available. More Oregonians get vaccinated every day, ”Sidelinger said.
Health officials said Friday that the weekly allocation of the first doses in Oregon is rising again from 75,000 to 82,000.
“These extra doses will help us make sure our deadlines stay on track and we can even get past our older adult population, but it’s still too early to tell,” Allen said.
In the United States, more than 70 million doses have been shipped to states and more than 52.8 million have been administered, according to the CDC.
A total of 38.2 million Americans – 11.6% of the population – received at least one dose, while 14 million – 4.2% – received both doses.
Currently, on average, between 1.6 and 1.7 million people are vaccinated every day.
Health officials say they want to reiterate the importance of vaccination as soon as the doses become available to you.
The COVID-19 vaccine is safe and effective. The benefits of the vaccine far outweigh the risks of taking COVID-19, ”Surgeon General D. Mary Giswold told the PA.