As America struggles to administer vaccine doses due to logistical bottlenecks and stock shortages, Israel’s explosion of vaccine shows signs of dramatic success.
Just over four months ago, the COVID-19 outbreak of Israel was one of the worst on earth, and the country closed tightly. Then the Israeli government signed an agreement with Pfizer-BioNTech for enough doses to vaccinate every Israeli adult by the end of March.
After two months, the data is as promising as scientists predicted. In a study of 1.2 million people, the 600,000 who received the vaccine were 94% less likely to develop symptomatic infections.
Professor Gili Regev-Yochay, director of the Infectious Diseases Epidemiology Unit in Sheba, says the stock is stable and the program is working.
“It’s unbelievable,” he said, adding, “and they’re lowering the levels at which people can already be vaccinated.”
Just a few days ago, Israel’s closure was eased. This is a welcome new reality for the country – and for us a possible look to the future.
There is also more hope for other countries as the global vaccination effort slowly goes beyond the richly developed world. Syrian refugees are now being shot, and the first shipments have just arrived in Zimbabwe.
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