1 million Pennsylvanians have missed their second shot. They’ll need it against the Delta variant.
by Justine McDaniel, Erin McCarthy, and Chris A. Williams
Published Jul 2, 2021
More than one million Pennsylvanians have missed their second coronavirus shots, a no-show rate among the nation’s highest and a gap that could prove critical as the country braces for the spread of the newer, more transmissible Delta variant. By June’s end, 70% of Pennsylvania adults should have been fully vaccinated. Instead, the state had reached only 60%, meaning many who got their first doses in May skipped the second shots.
With both doses likely needed to protect against the Delta variant — a single shot is only about 33% effective against Delta, one study found — getting the second shot has become more urgent than ever. Yet the share of Pennsylvanians not completing their immunizations has been rising over the last two months, reaching nearly 17% this week, according to an Inquirer analysis of CDC vaccination data. The reasons so many are skipping or delaying second shots are unclear — particularly since Pennsylvanians have done better than many in other states at showing up for their first shots.
And understanding why could prove difficult: The Pennsylvania Department of Health is not tracking missed second doses, meaning state officials don’t know who skipped the shots or what demographic groups they belong to, information that could be critical for addressing the problem. Millions are fully vaccinated, but doctors are worried about those who are skipping, particularly as U.S. leaders make it clear that more inoculations are the country’s best hope for quashing Delta’s threat to the pandemic recovery.
That has prompted new campaigns here and around the country urging people to return for their second doses. “If our immunization rates were at 85% or higher level, the individuals who missed the second dose would not be of grave concern,” said Janet Young, chief medical officer for Greater Philadelphia Health Action Inc., which serves patients at community health centers across the city. “But we aren’t even close.”
https://www.inquirer.com/news/covid-second-shots-skip-delta-vaccine-pa-20210702.html
= new reply since forum marked as read
