Why COVID-19 vaccines need to prioritize 'superspreaders'

[TexasTowelie]

Once safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines are available, tough choices will need to be made about who gets the first shots.

A committee of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine – at the behest of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and National Institutes of Health – has proposed an equitable way to allocate the vaccine.

They recommend first responders and health care workers take top priority. Older adults in congregate living situations would also be part of a first vaccination phase, according to the plan.

We are faculty at Johns Hopkins University and the University of Southern California who have spent decades studying health economics and epidemiology. One of us is a member of the National Academy of Medicine.

Read more: https://theconversation.com/why-covid-19-vaccines-need-to-prioritize-superspreaders-145232

[genxlib]

1. One of the few things I have agreed with the Trump admin lately

Is the pre-purchase of vaccines before they are proven ready.

In theory, they can go ahead and start making them and have them ready to go when/if they pass the trials.

Best case scenario, we are ready for a widespread fast rollout when we get the green light.

Worst case scenario, the whole batch goes up in a multi-billion dollar bonfire. Considering the on-going damage to the economy, that is a drop in the bucket to how much we are losing. It is worth taking the chance to have it ready to go quickly.

It is a controversial strategy but I think it is a good investment considering the stakes of getting the Country back on track.

The question of who gets it first will still be critical but much less so if the doses are ready for rollout.

Of course that assumes we can actually get an approval that we can all believe and that enough people will take it to reach herd immunity. Neither of those look assured at this point.

Other than that, my main take away from the article is that we don't prioritize those that need it the most. We prioritize those that are the least patient. Sounds like the American way to me.