We can defeat COVID-19 through vaccinations

Just as in many decisions, one must weigh the risks against the benefits — then choose

We are entering the darkest winter in a century, as the COVID-19 pandemic rages across the United States. It has killed more than 320,000 Americans and overwhelmed the capacity of many hospitals.

We have a better understanding of the disease now, knowing that it spreads through the air and that mask-wearing and avoidance of crowds is critical for prevention. We also have improved treatments with monoclonal antibodies, Remdesevir, dexamethasone and convalescent plasma. But still the carnage persists as this virus spreads relentlessly.

We have much better data tracking as to how prevalent the virus is in each region, thanks to websites such as Harvard’s globalepidemics.org. It is no surprise that nearly the entire country is in the red zone, with the situation worsening daily after the Thanksgiving spike in cases. The fear is that Christmas gatherings will further heighten the spike, increasing cases and deaths.

Just as the winter solstice offers hope for longer days and the promise of spring, the development and U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval for emergency use of two vaccines for COVID-19 offer some hope of ending this pandemic. The technology is astounding and a major breakthrough in vaccine research.

These two vaccines are composed of messenger RNA, essentially a genetic code for the spike protein on this coronavirus. The vaccine recipient’s immune system is primed to fight the actual virus if infection does occur later. Both vaccines have been proven highly effective in doing this, with greater than 90% protection for those given the vaccines in recent phase 3 trials.

Vaccines in general have saved countless lives over the course of human history, and thus are a key weapon in protecting the public health. Notable examples include vaccines against smallpox, yellow fever, typhoid, polio, whooping cough, tetanus and meningitis. Let’s not forget the flu vaccine which saves thousands of lives yearly.

Are the COVID-19 vaccines safe? Two points are important. There were no shortcuts taken in producing these vaccines. They went through the standard process of development, including well-designed studies in which more than 73,000 people (including those of diverse ages and ethnicity) were given the shot or a placebo. The side effects were minor: soreness at the injection site, fatigue, fever, headache and muscle aches. Secondly, it is impossible to get COVID-19 from the shot, since there is no live virus injected, only protein from its surface.

The miracle that these vaccines were available so rapidly relates to the heroic amount of effort put into the process by many researchers around the world. The recent final approval of both vaccines was from a panel of independent scientists reviewing the trial data over many hours before voting for emergency use authorization.

The key to the success of the vaccines ending the pandemic is ensuring that 70-80% of the population receives them, in order to achieve herd immunity. Even with vaccines, it is critical to continue mask-wearing, social distancing and frequent hand washing, because the vaccines are not 100% effective and we are not sure how long protection lasts. Additionally, these basic public health measures prevent transmission of colds and flu.

The question becomes should I get a vaccine for COVID-19? Just as in many decisions, one must weigh the risks and benefits. The decision seems clear: The benefit of protecting yourself and your family and the promise of ending the pandemic vastly outweighs any rare risk of the vaccine. Many people already have rolled up their sleeves to get the shot.

We Americans unified to win World War II through heroic effort. Let’s get together now and end this pandemic.