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Updated July 2nd, 2021 at 20:06 IST

All US-authorised COVID-19 vaccines effective against Delta variant: Dr Fauci

Dr Anthony Fauci on July 1 said that all COVID-19 vaccines which have been authorised by the US are highly effective against the Delta variant.

Reported by: Bhavya Sukheja
US
IMAGE: AP/PIXABAY | Image:self
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US top infectious disease expert Dr Anthony Fauci on July 1 said that all COVID-19 vaccines which have been authorised by the US are highly effective against the Delta variant. While speaking at a press briefing, Fauci informed that according to Public Health England, the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine was 96 per cent effective against hospitalization from the Delta variant after two doses, and the AstraZeneca was 92 per cent effective against hospitalization after two doses. He went on to say that as AstraZeneca and J&J (Johnson & Johnson) are based on similar platforms, the results against the Delta variant are expected to be at least similar. 

"Since these vaccines -- the AZ and the J & J (Johnson & Johnson) are based on very similar platforms, one could anticipate and make a reasonable assumption that the results against the Delta variant would be at least similar, perhaps even better. We are now looking at neutralization data, and soon we will have more firm data which we will make available to you as soon as it occurs," Fauci mentioned while speaking on the J&J single-dose vaccine.

Further, the tp US health expert stressed that the science is clear and added that the best way to protect an individual against the virus and the variants is to be fully vaccinated. "It works. It's free. It's safe. It's easy. And it's convenient," Fauci said. He also expressed concern over the Delta variant as it is "more efficient" than the other variants.

He said, "The Delta variant has the capability of spreading much more efficiently from person to person. It also can cause more severe diseases. So there are two things about it that are troublesome”. 

Moreover, while speaking about the full approval of the COVID-19 vaccine by the US FDA, Fauci also exuded confidence that it will happen soon, adding that it “would really be a most unusual situation not to see this get full approval”. He also said that the US can still celebrate the July 4 national holiday if people are fully vaccinated and protected against the virus. 

Delta variant likely to eclipse Alpha variant 

Meanwhile, Rochelle Walensky, the Director of US CDC, said that the Delta variant is likely to eclipse the Alpha variant, first identified in the UK, in the coming weeks. The WHO has also separately warned that in the coming months the Delta variant will become the dominant variant of the coronavirus globally. The UN agency warned that given the increase in transmissibility, the Delta variant is expected to “rapidly outcompete other variants” and “become the dominant variant over the coming months”.

"An estimated 25 per cent of all reported SARS-CoV-2 sequences nationwide are the Delta variant. And in some regions of the country, nearly one in two sequences is the Delta variant," Walensky said.

(With inputs from ANI)

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Published July 2nd, 2021 at 20:06 IST

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