Wenceslao: Breakthrough infections

Wenceslao: Breakthrough infections

One of the hitches in the campaign for vaccination to prevent the spread of Covid-19 is the reported cases of breakthrough infections. One will have a breakthrough infection if one gets infected by the virus even if one is already fully vaccinated. The question that the unvaccinated raise because of this is “What’s the use then of getting vaccinated?” This is because our past experience with vaccines is that these fully protect us from the targeted infection agents. Meaning we won’t get infected.

Among the countries where breakthrough infections have become a problem is the United States, which is now experiencing another surge in Covid-19 infections. The US is among the countries where the acquisition of vaccines is not a problem. But politics and individual beliefs are jeopardizing the mass vaccination effort.

Experts are, of course, currently trying to understand the nature of breakthrough infections to be able to incorporate the knowledge in the fight against the pandemic, notably in battling the variants of the coronavirus. The delta variant, which is easily transmissible, is the main cause of the surges of infections we are seeing everywhere. It has become more of a concern than the original virus.

I am fully vaccinated but know that the protection the vaccine provides is not 100 percent. That is why I am open to a booster shot, meaning a third dose if the government will require it. In the meantime, I will seek protection in other ways, like following the protocols. What is reassuring is that while I may get infected, the illness will not be that serious like what is being suffered by the unvaccinated.

What is concerning now is the possibility that the vaccinated may yet spread the virus. Some of the experts say they do not; others say they do. If they help spread the virus, then the more we should follow the protocols not only for ourselves but for our loved ones as well, who are still to be vaccinated.

I appreciate the local government units that are trying to speed up their vaccination effort. Some are even doing it for 24 hours. It’s also good that more and more people want to be vaccinated. But there are those who are still hesitant even if it has already been proven that getting vaccinated is safe. I am not hearing much the reasons used by the US anti-vaxxers, like insisting on individual freedom. The concern about the safeness of getting vaccinated is genuine, even though that has no basis in fact.

The deadline for the filing of the certificates of candidacy for the positions open in the May 9, 2022 elections nears, and we are slowly seeing the faces of the wannabes for national posts on television.

At the local level, everything is still uncertain though and the wannabes have still to come out. The post for Cebu City mayor is also uncertain especially because the oldies are having health problems. There seems to be a coming changing of the guard, which makes for a more exciting election.

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