"Vaccine Effectiveness Prediction Missed... Increased Vaccination Rate Needed for Social Distancing Effect"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Jung-yoon] Park Hyang, head of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters' quarantine team, appeared on a radio broadcast on the 18th and stated that predictions about vaccine effectiveness and the occurrence of severe and critical patients were off. He urged vaccination to see the effects of the high-intensity social distancing measures starting that day.

Park appeared on KBS Radio's 'Jung Gwan-yong's Current Affairs Headquarters' and said, "Experts, the government, and the world had expected vaccine effectiveness to last up to six months, but that prediction has been overturned," adding, "The effectiveness drops sharply from 3 to 4 months."

He continued, "Initially, about 1.6% of total COVID-19 confirmed cases were severe or critical patients, and it was expected to rise to 1.7-1.8%, but it has increased to 2.7%," explaining, "The main reason is that the duration of vaccine effectiveness has become much shorter, which is why the vaccination interval was shortened first."

Park also said, "Even if the number of confirmed cases increases to 10,000, we predicted the severe and critical patient rate to be around 1.7-1.8%, and we were gradually expanding hospital beds, but the shorter vaccine effectiveness period and especially cluster infections centered on nursing facilities seem to have had a greater impact on hospital bed availability."

Furthermore, Park emphasized that increasing the vaccination rate is important for the high-intensity social distancing measures, which will continue until January 2 of next year, to be effective. He said, "We expect effectiveness, but the premise is that the vaccination rate must increase accordingly," explaining, "Unvaccinated individuals account for more than 50% of severe and fatal cases, so vaccination of the unvaccinated is necessary." Regarding the effect of the third vaccine dose, he said, "According to results from Israel, the infection prevention effect is 11 times higher, and the effect on severe cases is more than 20 times higher."

When asked whether the incidence rate of adverse vaccine reactions in adolescents is lower than in adults, he replied, "Based on reported cases, it is not higher than in adults," and added, "We would appreciate it if people actively participate in vaccination considering the effects of vaccination and the overall social situation."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.