Source: Bloomberg
Israel’s world-leading campaign to vaccinate its citizens is beginning to rein in the disease, according to the country’s second-largest health network.
Maccabi Health Services studied a sample group of 50,777 people over the age of 60 inoculated in late December and then again in mid-January. Raw data showed that two days after the second shot, the number of new infections and hospitalizations were both down about 60% from their peak, researchers reported.
Trends began to shift around two weeks from the first dose, according to the analysis Maccabi did in collaboration with Israeli computational health researchers KI Institute.
Shot Shift
Israeli analysis shows Pfizer vaccine reducing positive virus caseshttps://www.bloomberg.com/toaster/v2/charts/ee01423696c443f3af6f509924a3f43f.html?brand=politics&webTheme=politics&web=true&hideTitles=true
Source: Maccabi Research and Innovation Center
Note: Stats are moving 7-day average or quantity among Maccabi members 60+
A separate Israeli study of health workers who received two doses of the Pfizer Inc. shot found elevated levels of antibodies in nearly every participant that matched or exceeded clinical results.
Israeli Study of Pfizer Shot Finds High Levels of Antibodies (1)
Israel has been largely using Pfizer’s vaccine since it began its immunization drive in late December, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu offering data on the campaign to expedite and expand shipments. The country has been adhering to Pfizer’s guidance of a second shot about three weeks after the first, reserving second doses.
Read more: Election Pressure in Israel Helps Speed the Vaccination Process
So far about 2.5 million people, or more than a quarter of the population, have received a first dose, with almost a milllion more getting the second. Children under 16, who have not been approved to take the vaccine, account for about 30% of the country’s 9.3 million people.
The country is currently in the midst of a third lockdown that began in late December to control a resurgence of the outbreak. In total, Israel has had nearly 600,000 cases and more than 4,360 deaths.
Categories: Vaccine
Pfizer Inc. will be able to supply the U.S. with 200 million Covid-19 vaccine doses by the end of May, two months sooner than previously expected, according to its top executive.
Chief Executive Officer Albert Bourla said Tuesday that the drugmaker and its partner, BioNTech SE, will be able to deliver the doses to the U.S. well before an earlier July 31 deadline due to a change in the vaccine’s label that allows health-care providers to extract an additional dose from each vial.
The six-dose-per-vial count became effective on Monday and applies to supply contracts going forward, according to a Pfizer representative.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-01-26/pfizer-to-deliver-u-s-vaccine-doses-faster-than-expected-ceo?srnd=premium&sref=eGA8az79