Vice President Kamala Harris echoed Joe Biden’s demands for more COVID requirements on social media Sunday night, saying the only way the United States can “end this pandemic” is through masking, inoculations, and “protecting the vaccinated.”
“By vaccinating the unvaccinated, increasing our testing and masking, and protecting the vaccinated, we can end this pandemic. That’s exactly what we are committed to doing,” posted the VP on Twitter.
Critics on social media were quick to question the Vice President’s statement.
“Can someone please explain how getting vaccinated helps protect the vaccinated?” asked one user.
“Protecting the vaccinated?? Are you suggesting that the vaccine isn’t the protection that it’s being presented as?” posted another.
According to the New York Times, the odds of a “breakthrough” infection for vaccinated Americans is roughly 1 in 5,000, with the chances of being seriously ill or hospitalized much lower than that.
“How small are the chances of the average vaccinated American contracting Covid? Probably about one in 5,000 per day, and even lower for people who take precautions or live in a highly vaccinated community,” writes the New York Times.
“The chances are surely higher in the places with the worst Covid outbreaks, like the Southeast. And in places with many fewer cases — like the Northeast, as well as the Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco areas — the chances are lower, probably less than 1 in 10,000,” adds the newspaper.
“There’s been a lot of miscommunication about what the risks really are to vaccinated people, and how vaccinated people should be thinking about their lives,” said Dr. Ashish Jha of Brown University.
