COLUMBUS – There is potentially good news about the durability of COVID-19 vaccines as well as their ability to fight off newly emerging variants.
That news comes as Gov. Mike DeWine and the state’s top health official try to encourage younger Ohioans to get vaccinated against the disease.
Since the vaccines haven’t been around that long, experts are still studying vaccinated people to determine how long their protection lasts, if boosters might be needed and, if so, when.
So far, evidence indicates the immunity from shots by Pfizer and Moderna lasts at least six months, and likely longer.
“It’s just not waning at that six-month interval. Add to it the fact that it appears to hold up very well against the variants, including the ones that were most feared to escape the protection provided by the vaccine,” Vanderhoff said Wednesday during DeWine’s pandemic briefing.
The state reported 1,789 new cases of COVID-19 Wednesday, the fifth straight day when the number of new cases was below 2,000.
“Just because the numbers are getting better and more people are getting vaccinated, the virus is now more dangerous than it was a few months ago for those who haven’t been vaccinated,” said Governor DeWine.
Although cases have plateaued, DeWine and Vanderhoff warn virus variants are more contagious among those who have not been vaccinated and that younger people are at greater risk than a few months ago.
“Essentially, the new variants have evolved to stick much more easily to our cells, so it takes less of the virus and less exposure to make one sick.
The state unveiled three new public service announcements today that encourage young Ohioans to get vaccinated.
While 38 percent of the state’s total population has received at least one coronavirus vaccination shot, only 16% of those under the age of 30 have been inoculated, compared with nearly 70% of those age 50 and over.
According to the department, 3.2 million people, or 27.5% of the state’s population, have completed the vaccination process.
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A total of 1,058,395 million Ohioans have suffered with COVID-19 during the pandemic, with 55,323 of them needing to be hospitalized. There were 138 new hospital admissions Wednesday but the number of patients occupying beds fell by 53.
The state’s seven-day average positivity rate was 4.2%.