Although nearly 29% of Michigan adults were fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and another 14% received at least one dose of vaccine by Thursday, experts warn them to wear masks and distance themselves socially because of the spread of more contagious variants.
Although residents may be tempted to drop their guard, they should continue to pursue measures such as masks, social distance and hand washing, said Nigel Paneth, a professor of epidemiology at Michigan State University.
Michigan has led the country in new cases of COVID over the past week. Adult hospitalizations in the state reached a record earlier this week, surpassing the peaks of the spring of 2020 and the fall of 2020.
About 246 Michigan residents considered fully vaccinated against COVID-19 were later diagnosed with the virus, including three who died, state officials confirmed last week. Lynn Sutfin, spokeswoman for the Department of Health and Human Services, said the cases were being reviewed because some of them tested positive before being fully vaccinated.
Individuals are also vulnerable for a short period after their final dose. According to the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, a person is only considered fully vaccinated two weeks after their final vaccine dose.
Someone receiving the two doses of Pfizer vaccine is supposed to wait three weeks between their two required doses. Someone receiving the two-dose Moderna vaccine should wait four weeks between the required doses.
“The vaccine is not 100% effective, and there may be new variants that you will only know a few weeks or even months later,” Paneth said.
Michigan has the second largest number of B.1.1.7 cases in the country behind Florida, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has found that the variant is the most dominant version of the virus in the United States. The UK variant is much more transmissible than the initial SARS-CoV-2 virus, and a study by the U, K. found that it may also be associated with an increase in deaths.
People receiving one dose of the two doses of Pfizer or Moderna vaccines are infected with COVID. Health authorities have said these people need to recover from their infections first. The body will help create a natural immunity to the virus due to the infection, but people need to get their second chance after recovering to ensure full protection, experts said.
Even those who for some reason are delayed in getting a second injection should get the second dose as soon as possible, said dr. Laraine Washer, a hospital epidemiologist from Michigan Medicine, the health system of the University of Michigan, said.
“If someone is infected after the first dose of vaccine and before the second dose of vaccine, they should wait at least ten days after the onset of the infection or a positive test and be free of symptoms before receiving their second dose,” Washer added.
“If someone waits outside the 21- or 28-day target for the second dose, they should get the second dose when they have recovered,” she said. “They don’t have to start all over again with a first shot.”
Variants complicate matters
COVID-19 has been considered more contagious than other, less serious viruses such as influenza. But the emergence of variants exacerbated the situation.
New variants develop when the virus jumps from one person to another and mutates to adapt to its new environment. This means a high transmission rate and increases the likelihood of an even more dangerous or vaccine-resistant strain emerging.
So it is up to everyone to try to reduce the transmission, even if they have been vaccinated, Paneth said.
“I still think there is something to be said for acting in a certain way so that others will act in a certain way,” he added.
The predominant strain in Michigan is B.1.1.7, the variant first identified in the United Kingdom, Drs. Dennis Cunningham, medical director for infection control and prevention of the Henry Ford Health System, said. According to Michigan’s Department of Health and Human Services, Michigan confirmed about 3,325 cases of the British variant by Friday.
“Although there is one recent study from Israel that suggested that the Pfizer vaccine is less effective against this strain, I think it is important to know that the vaccine is likely to prevent serious diseases even if it is less effective – cases which requires an emergency department or hospitalization, ‘Cunningham said.
Cunningham says the West Coast tribes, B.1.427 and B.1.429, originated in California and spread rapidly elsewhere. They are more contagious than the original strain of the coronavirus, but are not considered more deadly. According to the state health department, the two are jointly responsible for 71 cases in Michigan.
The current vaccines have been shown to be less effective in preventing infection by the West Coast strains, or the B.1.351 virus, which originated in South Africa and made 14 people sick in Michigan. But the shots reduced serious illness and hospitalizations, Cunningham said.
“The Brazil P.1 strain is a wild card. I don’t think we know how well vaccines will protect against this strain,” he said. According to the Michigan Department of Health, twenty-three cases have been identified in the state.
“My message you take home: the vaccines are still effective and I urge people to receive them,” Cunningham said.
But the appearance of variants means that people have to sit a few meters apart while eating or drinking, and try to move activities outdoors.
“With the increasing number of cases in Michigan, I recommend that anyone who is vaccinated with one or two doses still wear a mask when they are in public,” Cunningham said.
“No vaccine is 100% effective, and it is an essential step in limiting the increasing number of cases.”
Vaccines prevent serious diseases
Vaccinations can prevent people who become infected from becoming seriously ill with COVID-19, UM’s Washer said.
“A primary purpose of vaccination is to prevent hospitalization and death,” Washer said. “The vaccines do that. We see very few people who are fully vaccinated who need hospitalization for COVID.”
People who have received one dose of a two-dose vaccine should continue to follow the recommendations for unvaccinated people, she said. People who have been fully vaccinated can start unmasking, but be careful.
“Being vaccinated does mean that you can start doing activities with limited risk, without a mask like visiting a vaccinated friend or two, as long as that friend does not live with people who are high risk of severe COVID infection has not been vaccinated, ”said Washer.
“Given the high number of COVID-19 cases and the prevalence of communities in Michigan at the moment, there’s a high chance you can meet someone with COVID infection in public, so you need to limit interactions with large groups of people and wear your mask in public. “
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