The COVID-19 vaccine is tight. The existing 1.17 million doses of AZ vaccine in China will bottom out at the fastest in the fourth round. The next fifth round of the command center plans to focus on the Modena vaccine, and most of it will be the second dose. The new batch of vaccines arrives in Taiwan and will be adjusted.
It was always going to be a shitshow. Just need to hope we don’t have deltaoutbreak
Theoretically having the option of getting a good vaccine “in the years ahead” will not help you much if you have died of covid prior to that because you did not get a good vaccine
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It’s best to get whatever vaccine is available as early as possible, because even waiting for a “better” vaccine contributes to prolonging the pandemic.
Hell, I’d even get the China vaccine if it was the only one available, chiefly as a stopgap until I can get something better.
If someone was shooting bullets at me, I’d rather hide behind an inferior shield than stand out in the open insisting on waiting for a better shield.
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depends on your age and situation.
2nd AZ shot can be up to 45 weeks after 1st, as for immunity.
For me, I agree but for the reason that it’s a race against when (notice I didn’t say “if”) the delta variant will make its way into Taiwan. You want to be double vaxxed by then.
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Hence the importance of “the earlier the better.”
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https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2108891
A study by Public Health England (PHE) found in May the Pfizer (PFE.N)-BioNTech (22UAy.DE)vaccine was 88% effective against symptomatic disease from the Delta two weeks after the second dose.
That compared with 93% effectiveness against the Alpha variant, first identified in Britain.
Two doses of the AstraZeneca (AZN.L) vaccine were 60% effective against symptomatic disease from the Delta compared with 66% effectiveness against the Alpha, PHE said.
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Yeah this is one of my issues with the governments denialism about the vaccine situation. It’s given people a false sense of security that they can engage in vaccine shopping and wait for their vaccine of choice. Many doing that are older people who could be more vulnerable.
They have been milking feel good feelies from vaccine donations and stock arriving for months now on socials. Would have been more responsible to be frank with people
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It’s very likely I’ll end up with two AZ now, or AZ plus a local vaccine. But I may well get something else if I return to the US or if it’s available before I next travel.
Vaccinated is a big jump over unvaccinated and then there will turn out to be gradations of vaccinated and there will also be boosters as we learn more. For now I’m an “any port in a storm” person.
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I want anything but Medigen. I was hesitant on AZ but I’ll take it any day over a domestic vaccine.
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I agree, if for the fact it’ll be useless for travel if nothing else.
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Yeah that’s very true, it probably won’t be recognized as a legitimate vaccine by other countries.
I trust Taiwan to make a great vaccine (probably better than 80% of countries if they tried, at least), but I don’t feel safe to be the one to test it. I also think a widespread international vaccine is likely to have it’s side effects well documented due to the massive sample size.
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Based on 7-day moving average (UK figures)
Winter Wave, Winter 2020-21:
Daily New Cases peak: 59,417 (Jan 9)
Deaths per Day peak: 1,251 (Jan 23)
% vaxed on Jan 9: 3.4% (0.6% fully)
Ratio of peak deaths to peak cases: 2.105%
Delta Wave, Summer 2021:
Daily New Cases peak, Delta wave: 47,101 (Jul 21)
Deaths per Day peak, Delta wave: 72 (Jul 30)
% vaccinated on Jul 21: 68.9% (53.9% fully)
Ratio of peak deaths to peak cases: 0.153%
Result: 92.74% reduction in deaths.
Data sources:
Worldometers (daily new cases and deaths per day)
OurWorldInData (vaccination percentages)
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My spouse tried to update me on the vaccine availability predicament we seem to be in.
We both chose Moderna Only when the queue started. There currently isn’t enough Moderna, and those who did get their first Moderna shot are prioritized for getting their 2nd vs those who haven’t had any.
If I switch now to AZ Only or AZ∪Moderna, I go to the back of those lines, and if I later choose to switch back to Moderna, I end up at the back again.
Medigen is expected to be available this month (August). The government is likely to push Medigen hard to people like me who are still unvaccinated with no prospect of getting Moderna or AZ.
Pfizer BNT seems to be being earmarked for 12-18 year olds, and President Tsai has declared (link?) that she wants to make sure college students (i.e., potential votes next year) get BNT as well.
This was always my worry for those who chose ‘Moderna Only’ a few weeks ago. There were way more ‘Moderna Only’ selections than actual Moderna doses to give out at the time.
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Are you sure about this? I don’t doubt you because I don’t know, but it seems to me that priority has always been based on age for the most part, and is not a function of whether some decision was made at the right time. I would check on this.
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I honestly don’t think this will happen first
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willingnesses registered by July 19 have been given priority.
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Your post has jogged my memory. During my group (the first with the new system), people were being urged to go back into the system and change their preference to include AZ (both Moderna and AZ, for example). But now I remember it was for during our few days of registration for desire to get vaccinated, and not outside of it. Interesting.
It seems fair, but at the same time, not the best for society, such as an 80 year old now wanting to get AZ being put to the end of the line. Is there some kind of remedy for these folks?