When people are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and are still infected, the Department of Health refers to them as “innovative cases”.
According to a KITV4 report, three Hawaii residents who were fully vaccinated are now infected with COVID-19.
The doctors to whom the ABC News affiliate spoke said that this is not a surprise nor should people be alarmed: the vaccine “does not prevent infection, but it reduces the risk of hospitalization and severe symptoms”. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “current vaccines are between 66 and 95 percent effective.”
The report gave, as an example, a case of “breakthrough” that involved a health professional who, after visiting several cities in the United States, showed a positive result when he returned to Oahu.
The media cited Dr. Melinda Ashton, director of quality for Hawaii Pacific Health, who says she is an example of “why traveling can increase the risk of infection”.
“It is absolutely necessary to be careful when you are at the airport, on the plane, with other people in larger groups,” said Ashton.
The numbers are a clear sign that vaccines offer protection.
Currently, the report states that in the entire state, only five people infected with coronavirus need an ICU bed, while last September, at its peak, the number reached 65.
KITV4 quoted Dr. Julius Pham, chairman of Queen’s Medical Center’s COVID-19 committee, who believes “it is a clear sign that vaccines offer protection against hospitalization”.
“We have not seen this type of number since the beginning of the pandemic,” said Pham. “We are still having about 50-60 cases a day in the state, but our hospitalization numbers have dropped more than the state’s infection rate.”
This is a common question that is still being asked about vaccines.
“Are people diagnosed with COVID-19 after vaccination, more or less infectious?”
Dr. Michael Walter, from the Kalihi-Palama Health Center, said: “Over time, as more people are vaccinated, we have more time under our control with this vaccine, we have a better idea of how long the protection lasts” .
Of the fully vaccinated individuals who tested positive, according to the health department, they did not become seriously ill and “none were known to have transmitted the virus,” the report added.
SEE MORE INFORMATION: