‘Real-world’ study of vaccines in United States finds them to be 90% effective

A study of health care and frontline workers who received the Moderna or Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines found that those shots were 90% effective at preventing infection two weeks after a person received their second dose.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released the study of nearly 4,000 frontline workers, which was conducted in eight different regions in the United States, marks one of the first “real world conditions” studies of the two vaccines developed with novel mRNA technology.

The new study also found that the first dose offered 80% protection.

National public health leaders expressed concern Monday over changing virus trends in several states, with case counts ticking up in unvaccinated young people. The numbers are prompting worry of a fourth wave of infections among those who do not yet qualify for vaccination.

Washington hospital leaders continue to urge vaccination as the way out of the pandemic.

“The state is vaccinating about 45,000 patients daily, so I think the vaccination effort puts us in a different spot than we were a couple months ago,” Dan Getz, chief medical officer at Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center, said Monday.

“I think what we really have to focus on is keeping people out of the hospital, and the way we do that with the variants increasing is vaccinating,” he added.

The rate of disease and hospitalization in older Washington residents is declining, Cassie Sauer, Washington State Hospital Association CEO, pointed out Monday.

More than 70% of Washington residents who are 65 and older have received at least one dose, and nearly half are fully vaccinated.

Starting Wednesday in Washington, people with two or more underlying health conditions, residents 60 and older and high-risk workers in congregate settings, including restaurants and construction industries, will be eligible to get vaccinated.

While many states have expedited their vaccine timelines, setting dates when all residents will be eligible to be vaccinated in April, Washington is currently still set on its phased approach to vaccination until May 1, when all eligible adults over the age of 16 will be eligible.

“I hope we can keep getting more supply and zip right through these phases,” Sauer said.

There are appointments available at several local providers in Spokane County, and they can be booked through the state’s vaccine locator tool or by calling (800) 525-0127, then pressing the pound key (#).

A look at local numbers

The Spokane Regional Health District confirmed 48 new cases Monday and three additional deaths.

There have been 611 Spokane County residents who have died from COVID-19 thus far in the pandemic.

There are 58 patients hospitalized with the virus in Spokane County .

The Panhandle Health District confirmed 35 new cases Monday and one additional death.

There have been 283 deaths due to COVID-19 in Panhandle residents.

There are 22 Panhandle residents hospitalized with COVID-19.