Americans should be vaccinated as soon as possible when their turn comes, and should not wait for the next generation of vaccines in the hope of more protection against variants, said dr. Anthony Fauci, the country’s leading expert in infectious diseases, said.
“You need to be vaccinated as quickly and as quickly as possible across the country,” Fauci said Monday during a White House COVID-19 response team. “The reason for that is that there is a fact that permeates virology, and that means viruses cannot mutate if they do not recur.”
Widespread vaccination prevents the SARS-CoV-2 virus from having an ‘open playing field’, Fauci said. Rapid vaccinations can protect people from disease, infections and prevent emerging strains in the US and abroad.
UK launches mass coronavirus trying to contain South African varieties
Early data indicate that vaccines will remain effective against variants, although one strain in particular, which was first detected in South Africa, has reduced the effectiveness of vaccines.
Moderna, for example, announced last week that the trial results have no significant impact on the vaccine’s effectiveness in neutralizing the virus, despite the introduction of new variants, according to a news release. However, the company will continue with plans to test an amplifier shot “to further increase the neutralizing titers against emerging strains”, and promote another variety candidate specifically against the South African variant.
Pfizer and BioNTech have already expressed confidence in the ability of their COVID-19 vaccine to protect against new variants and have previously indicated the flexibility of the mRNA vaccine platform to adapt the vaccines if necessary.
MARYLAND CONFIRMS SOUTH AFRICAN CORONAVIRUS VARIANT
Meanwhile, new results on a vaccine developed by Johnson & Johnson revealed that jab was 72% effective in preventing COVID-19 in the US, but dropped to 66% in a larger trial worldwide. .
J&J reinforces hopes that its vaccine candidate will be effective against variant strains, and the company plans to submit an emergency use authorization (EUA) to the US in early February. The product will be ready immediately after approval.
Another vaccine in the pipeline, developed by Novavax, highlighted the ability of the South African strain to reduce the effectiveness of the vaccine. Recent findings from Novavax show that the vaccine is 89% effective against COVID-19 diseases, but has dropped to 60% among 60 volunteers in South Africa. Overall, the protection against the South African variant was 49%, the company said.
Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the new director of the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC), said people can take several steps to protect against variants amid high cases and emerging strains.
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“Wear a mask first, stay six feet apart when you are in public and around others who do not live in your household,” Walensky said during the briefing. “Second, avoid crowds and poorly ventilated areas. Thirdly, this is not the time to travel, but if you must travel, wear a mask and follow other CDCs and local guidance to protect you and others while traveling. And last but not least, the headline made you read this article.
The leadership of health officials has not shifted amid emerging variants, but officials have urged the public to double these mitigating steps to protect against the new virus and its emerging strains.
Fox News’ Alexandria Hein contributed to this article.