• ℹ️ Heads up...

    This is a popular topic that is fast moving Guest - before posting, please ensure that you check out the first post in the topic for a quick reminder of guidelines, and importantly a summary of the known facts and information so far. Thanks.

Coronavirus

Coronavirus - The Poll

  • Total voters
    97
It's thought that the vaccines could remain effective long-term in the vast majority; this is currently being looked at, and antibody levels are still very high in most people 6 months to a year on from vaccination (this is using trial subjects).

I think a booster campaign is being planned for the very vulnerable in a similar style to the flu jab campaign, however; the government wants to be safe rather than sorry in that regard. I think this will likely end up happening every year, with the vulnerable being called up for a COVID booster in the exact same way that they've always been called up for a flu booster each winter. Whether they stick to the top 4 priority groups as they always traditionally did with the flu vaccine or go more widely into the top 9 priority groups (as I believe they did with the flu jab in 2020, correct me if I'm wrong?) remains to be seen.

In fact, didn't Nadhim Zahawi even say that the government has plans in place for a booster campaign to begin in September, come to think of it, with the top 4 priority groups (over-70s, healthcare workers and clinically extremely vulnerable) being targeted?
 
RoyJess said:
I had my second jab this morning, I didn't feel a thing and no dead arm or side effects what so ever.

For those that are against lockdown or think that covid is nothing more than a Hoax, you only need to look at what is currently happening in India with hospitals being overwhelmed and with them running low of oxygen.

As for the variants evading the vaccine, currently there is no evidence of this and if it dose, it will happen gradually and not all of a sudden. From what I know, the variants are closely being monitored and the vaccines will be modified as required.

We are in a good position here in the UK compared to the rest of the world and I am grateful for that. I just hope the rest of the word catches up soon.
Click to expand...
So if the oxygen was available


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
GaryH said:
Just a thought with these vaccines.... does anyone know yet how long these doses will remain effective for? Or are we looking at another shot in the winter?
Click to expand...

My dad got his second dose of Pfizer last week and was told that he would get a call back in the autumn for a booster. I guess that could be another shot of the current vaccine, or a modified vaccine to take new variants in to account.

Either way, I think an annual jab is going to be likely for the forseeable future as this isn't just going to vanish.
 
Last day of the Kumbh Mela today...
Perhaps the Indian infection rates will now start to fall.
Attendance numbers dropped over the last week, but people still turned up in their thousands on a daily basis, too little too late.
Crazy that it was allowed to take place.
Absolutely stupid that it was allowed to continue in the circumstances.
 
Isn't there also a level of personal responsibility? Whether something is allowed to take place or not, you'd think people would know better by now not to go to large gatherings.
 
You would like to think so, but in this case, obviously not.
Large numbers of people in chose not to be personally responsible.
The government chose not to act to avoid upsetting faith leaders before elections to the upper chamber...allegedly.
The promised, planned marshalling and safety enforcement simply did not happen.
I love the Kumbh Mela, the "Glastonbury of the East", mixed up with a faith celebration for millions.
Swallowed every episode of the Channel 4 series about a decade ago, fantastic series.
Just not this year.
So now millions of non attenders suffer terribly, and new variants surface on a weekly basis.
It stinks.
 
So Raab started laying the groundwork for extending restrictions beyond June on the Sunday morning shows.

Unsure why but watch this space.
 
Dave said:
So Raab started laying the groundwork for extending restrictions beyond June on the Sunday morning shows.

Unsure why but watch this space.
Click to expand...
As far as I’m aware, the plan is still to get rid of social distancing laws on 21st June, with the social distancing guidance among friends & family gone from 17th May. The data doesn’t seem to indicate that that would be a colossal mistake.
EDIT: After doing some reading, I think what Raab was hinting at is that some smaller safeguards may stay in place beyond 21st June, such as protective screens in shops and things, as well as self-isolation if you have symptoms and such. Most things I’ve read seem to suggest that the 1m+ rule might cease to exist after 21st June.

From government ministers, reports seem to vary. Some like Boris Johnson and Matt Hancock seem more optimistic, while Dominic Raab supposedly is more cautious.
 
Last edited:
Despite the current figures are looking good, I assume that the potential of extending some of the restrictions will be down to the threat of the variants around the world.

However, it's been a month since I came out of a year long shielding mode and despite all the rules, I don't see many people bothering with compliance, the 1m+ rule being followed is a rare site
 
Well I guess until at know a lot more about the Indian variants and how they impact people in terms of transmission, mortality and vaccine effectiveness , there should continue to be some caution.
 
GaryH said:
Well I guess until at know a lot more about the Indian variants and how they impact people in terms of transmission, mortality and vaccine effectiveness , there should continue to be some caution.
Click to expand...

The Indian variant data should be available in the next week or so. It’s mutations exist in other variants so we have an idea how it works just need to check the combination doesn’t do anything interesting.
 
Matt.GC said:
It's been pretty much like that the whole year you've been shielding

Sent from my VOG-L29 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

I know, you only had to look on the news as well as our neighbours attempt to socially distancing, I think they confused 2 metres for 2 feet.

I lost count how many times I've been out in the front garden sorting our my our garden or the bins and my next-door neighbour would walk up to my 2 foot high front wall that divides our property. My drive way is 2 meters wide, so I have to retreat back against the wall of our home. It was as if they thought that our short wall was going to be a barrier against the virus. I think the problem is, people knew that we were properly shielding and knew that it was safe for them (not us) to get close.

Our other neighbour on the other side was very respectful, he once said that "Some people were better at socially distancing than others"

Now I've had my 2nd jab and Jess has had her first, we both feel safe going out, but we have been told that we still need to be careful. The stats and figures are in retreat and going down, so hopefully there is less transmission out their and as we reach herd immunity, the risks are greatly reduced. It's just the variants that we need to keep an eye on and if the figures start to rise again, then Jess and I may need to reconsider shielding again, but we are hoping that we won't need to
 
First thing that needs to go in June is these damn face coverings, they are so divisive and just cause arguments.
 
BigT said:
First thing that needs to go in June is these damn face coverings, they are so divisive and just cause arguments.
Click to expand...

Not the most nicest thing to wear during the hot weather, quiet stuffy. I do hope the wearing of face coverings do go when it is safe to do so

plus they are only effective if worn properly, I often seen them being worn half mask
 
RoyJess said:
Not the most nicest thing to wear during the hot weather, quiet stuffy. I do hope the wearing of face coverings do go when it is safe to do so

plus they are only effective if worn properly, I often seen them being worn half mask
Click to expand...
On that note, I'm losing track of the number of customers in work (often the elderly - just an observation, before anyone gets the wrong idea) who wear masks below their noses. It's been over a year now. I'd have better luck trying to toilet-train a puppy suffering with diarrhoea. I get that masks are a problem when wearing glasses - it was bad enough for me when I was trying different frames on at Specsavers last week - but there are ways around the issue.
 
Dave said:
So Raab started laying the groundwork for extending restrictions beyond June on the Sunday morning shows.

Unsure why but watch this space.
Click to expand...

From the moment the timetable of removal of restrictions was announced each date was always the earliest it could happen. The whole point of 5 week intervals is to see the effect of the preceeding changes on the infection and death rate. Its a sensible plan.

Why would you be surprised by these dates not being set in stone now? They never were.
 
Currently, everything is apparently on track for stages 3 & 4 of the roadmap (indoor stuff on 17th May and remaining social distancing restrictions on 21st June) to go ahead. Interestingly, the expected size of our “exit wave” has now dramatically reduced compared to a few months ago; back in February/March, scientists in SAGE were expecting another wave to occur and produce 30,000 deaths, whereas now it’s projected to be 5,000 deaths at most, possibly even not happening at all. This is because the vaccines are far more effective than originally anticipated, and uptake is also much higher than originally anticipated (thought to be as high as 95% among the top 9 priority groups). Even Nadhim Zahawi, the vaccines minister, said that he did not see us returning to another lockdown when interviewed recently.

Honestly, I think we could have a fairly normal summer on our hands if the current trajectory stays the same! Interestingly, even with the slowdown in first doses, it’s anticipated that the government could have offered a first dose to every adult well before the 31st July deadline, which is great to hear!

In terms of the next steps for the vaccine program once this is done, a vaccination program for secondary school pupils over 12 is being devised. This will see the Pfizer vaccine offered to all secondary school students above the age of 12 when they return to school in September, as part of the regular school immunisations that happen anyway. This will utilise some of the additional Pfizer doses that the government recently ordered. The reason I specify the Pfizer vaccine is because this is the only vaccine that currently has any trial results in adolescents, and they are seeking MHRA approval for use in 12-15 year olds as we speak; Moderna is conducting child trials, but hasn’t reported back yet, and the adenovirus vaccines (AstraZeneca/Janssen) suspended their trials in children after clot-gate.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top