With more and more people being vaccinated, cases in the UK are falling as people are falling less ill. There is evidence to suggest that one dose of the vaccine will give you a lower chance of dying from coronavirus, however two doses, under three months between them, gives you better protection.
The UK has approved three vaccines – Moderna, AstraZeneca and Pfizer. Moderna has not yet been rolled out, however the first doses of the vaccine will be available in the UK by April. With more and more vaccines being approved in the UK, the vaccination process will be sped up, meaning that a larger proportion of the population will be vaccinated. Other vaccines such as the Johnson and Johnson, requiring one dose, are yet to be approved, however more are hoped to be approved.
Scientists believe that the disease will never die out. Furthermore, it is important for the case numbers to be lower, otherwise the virus could mutate into a form that can resist the vaccine, creating a new problem. Therefore, the CoVax program has been set up in order to vaccinate as many people globally as possible. With more vaccines being released, more people can get the vaccine, meaning that poorer countries will be able to afford the vaccine. This is crucial, as the overall people vaccinated determines the probability of the disease mutating.
Many European countries however are going back into lockdown. Paris is one of the cities going back into lockdown. Many of these countries have only recently approved the AstraZeneca vaccine for use, and so have had less people vaccinated. The UK had spread out vaccine orders in order to guarantee a certain number of vaccines, however other countries have chosen to order all their vaccines from one company, which have not approved their vaccines yet. This strategy has seemed to work better than most other countries worldwide, however Israel ordered Pfizer as a larger percentage of their vaccines, so have less people contracting the disease. Israel being better off due to more people being vaccinated can help prove that vaccines are effective, and that they will reduce the chances of you dying from the coronavirus. The UK hopes that the vaccine roll out will further reduce national restrictions in order for people to be able to live their normal lives.
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