Time to put up a new thread. I'll lock this one until we exhaust the other thread. The last page of the Part II thread can be found here.
The changes brought by the vaccines have been huge. Cases, hospitalizations, and deaths are down and the difference is staggering. The pandemic is not over by a long shot and there are still plenty of concerns going forward, but it not only feels that the pandemic is being brought under control - the statistics are beginning to support that notion.
For that we can thank both changes in behavior after a huge surge in cases, hospitalizations, and deaths following a string of fall and winter holidays but also the arrival of the vaccines.
But just like the end of a war, someone will be the last to die - don't be that person, or the person 10,000x removed from that person.
As of this moment the Johns Hopkins tracking site has the U.S. death toll at 542, 949. Unfortunately, this is well within the range of deaths predicted at the onset of this pandemic, but it's not over yet. Not since the 1918 H1N1 Flu pandemic has the U.S. seen such a toll. Unfortunately, that number is still an undercount and does not include those who died from other causes but for which COVID-19 contributed to those deaths by causing delays in treatment.
Vaccinations are happening by the boatload now. More and more are accepting the vaccines, replacing earlier hesitancy with a new confidence based on the experiences of tens of millions of Americans and the pace of vaccinations is only accelerating. The frustrations of short supplies are giving way to the elation of higher demand coupled with increasing supply and easing eligibility. Many locations have already or soon will open vaccinations to all age groups authorized to receive a vaccine. Trials are underway in younger age groups and if things continue going well there will be vaccines to meet the coming new eligibilities.
We are truly living in an amazing time when we can produce a vaccine in less that a year of a new pathogen being discovered. This does not represent a shortcut or a compromise in safety, but rather decades of advancing science and technology. Just as few before 1896 (year the automobile was invented) or 1913 (year Ford changed manufacturing with the moving assembly line) could have predicted just how profoundly those breakthrough would change the world forever, few in 1954 (Salk vaccine) could have predicted what we are seeing today. mRNA vaccines are another step in that direction and so are viral vector vaccines.
Every vaccine authorized in the U.S. is perfect or near perfect in preventing hospitalizations and deaths in those who are fully vaccinated (those who are two weeks past their last dose of vaccine).
We are seeing loosening of restrictions for the fully vaccinated, thanks to the success of these vaccines; and this is supported soundly and resoundingly by the science. Tens of millions can now SAFELY gather WITHOUT masks or distancing with family and friends for the first time in a year or more, though the old rules still apply in public. Many are experiencing relief from worry over their own health and that of their loved ones and a new confidence that they have reached safety, finally.
But this is no time to forget to look out for others. Since it's still possible for a vaccinated person to be unknowingly infected and transmit the virus to someone who isn't so lucky we must still continue basic precautions in public.
I encourage you to get your vaccine(s) as soon as you are able. It's OK to still have questions and concerns - that's normal. It's not OK or normal to be against vaccines since they have saved more lives than any other single medical advancement in the history of mankind. It's not OK to spread misinformation and discourage others from being vaccinated.
Poll is open. Answers are private. Answers may be changed as your situation changes.
The changes brought by the vaccines have been huge. Cases, hospitalizations, and deaths are down and the difference is staggering. The pandemic is not over by a long shot and there are still plenty of concerns going forward, but it not only feels that the pandemic is being brought under control - the statistics are beginning to support that notion.
For that we can thank both changes in behavior after a huge surge in cases, hospitalizations, and deaths following a string of fall and winter holidays but also the arrival of the vaccines.
But just like the end of a war, someone will be the last to die - don't be that person, or the person 10,000x removed from that person.
As of this moment the Johns Hopkins tracking site has the U.S. death toll at 542, 949. Unfortunately, this is well within the range of deaths predicted at the onset of this pandemic, but it's not over yet. Not since the 1918 H1N1 Flu pandemic has the U.S. seen such a toll. Unfortunately, that number is still an undercount and does not include those who died from other causes but for which COVID-19 contributed to those deaths by causing delays in treatment.
Vaccinations are happening by the boatload now. More and more are accepting the vaccines, replacing earlier hesitancy with a new confidence based on the experiences of tens of millions of Americans and the pace of vaccinations is only accelerating. The frustrations of short supplies are giving way to the elation of higher demand coupled with increasing supply and easing eligibility. Many locations have already or soon will open vaccinations to all age groups authorized to receive a vaccine. Trials are underway in younger age groups and if things continue going well there will be vaccines to meet the coming new eligibilities.
We are truly living in an amazing time when we can produce a vaccine in less that a year of a new pathogen being discovered. This does not represent a shortcut or a compromise in safety, but rather decades of advancing science and technology. Just as few before 1896 (year the automobile was invented) or 1913 (year Ford changed manufacturing with the moving assembly line) could have predicted just how profoundly those breakthrough would change the world forever, few in 1954 (Salk vaccine) could have predicted what we are seeing today. mRNA vaccines are another step in that direction and so are viral vector vaccines.
Every vaccine authorized in the U.S. is perfect or near perfect in preventing hospitalizations and deaths in those who are fully vaccinated (those who are two weeks past their last dose of vaccine).
We are seeing loosening of restrictions for the fully vaccinated, thanks to the success of these vaccines; and this is supported soundly and resoundingly by the science. Tens of millions can now SAFELY gather WITHOUT masks or distancing with family and friends for the first time in a year or more, though the old rules still apply in public. Many are experiencing relief from worry over their own health and that of their loved ones and a new confidence that they have reached safety, finally.
But this is no time to forget to look out for others. Since it's still possible for a vaccinated person to be unknowingly infected and transmit the virus to someone who isn't so lucky we must still continue basic precautions in public.
I encourage you to get your vaccine(s) as soon as you are able. It's OK to still have questions and concerns - that's normal. It's not OK or normal to be against vaccines since they have saved more lives than any other single medical advancement in the history of mankind. It's not OK to spread misinformation and discourage others from being vaccinated.
Poll is open. Answers are private. Answers may be changed as your situation changes.
