The COVID-19 Delta Variant

I’m passing along the University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics information about the Delta variant of COVID-19. If you’re vaccinated and you get infected with the Delta variant, you might feel like your symptoms are from allergies or a cold. If you’re not vaccinated, you’re a lot more likely to get sick enough to be hospitalized.

According to Dr. Claudia Corwin, MD, MPH, an occupational medicine specialist and associate director of the University Employee Health Clinic, about 97% of those with a severe case of Delta variant are unvaccinated. That doesn’t mean the vaccines make us bullet proof and breakthrough infections of the Delta variant occur.

That’s probably part of the reason why the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) thinks vaccine booster shots might be better reserved for the most vulnerable patients, such as the very elderly, those in Long Term Care Facilities, and health professionals. The ACIP met yesterday and there was no firm decision about booster rollout specifics and there was no vote on the matter. They plan to meet again in mid-September to review the need for boosters.

CDC Publishes Data Prompting the Mask Guideline change

Today the CDC posted the data supporting the change in the mask guidelines for the fully vaccinated. It’s in the July 30, 2021 Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) describing the outbreak of several hundred new cases of the Delta variant COVID-19 infection in Barnstable County, Massachusetts following July 4th events. Those who were fully vaccinated shed virus as much as the unvaccinated.

Organizers of the Iowa State Fair and those planning to attend, take note.

Brown CM, Vostok J, Johnson H, et al. Outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 Infections, Including COVID-19 Vaccine Breakthrough Infections, Associated with Large Public Gatherings — Barnstable County, Massachusetts, July 2021. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. ePub: 30 July 2021. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm7031e2external icon.