Experts warn virus is changing so fast new vaccines might be needed

[ParlezVousWronglais]

..every year. Now reporting in Daily Mail and Guardian.

Flu vaccine is updated each year but we only vaccinate the most vulnerable. Realistically how are we going to keep vaccinating the whole population every year?

The same way we do it with the flu vaccine every year?

And with almost half a million people getting the covid vaccine every day, it actually seems to be going really well. I think it's doable.

Employ more staff? If it's cost effective to inject people rather than treat them or be absent from work, it will happen.

I would think this is pretty probable. And like you, I have no idea how we might do this logistically.

The best hope is that my limited understanding (physical scientist rather than biologist) is that typically novel viruses evolve to become less deadly because there's nothing in it for the virus, in evolutionary terms, in wiping out your host population. Of course, there are still viruses out there in history which were both highly contagious and had a high case fatality rate (smallpox being an obvious example).

Lots of larger employers both public and private have occupational health departments who offer all staff the flu vaccine each year. I suspect going forward employers will have a big role in vaccinations

It’s got to be done. Will have to be a priority. We can’t live like forever. Children need to be in school. And we need to see people!

We wouldnt vaccinate the whole population every year, just the most vulnerable like with flu. Why would people with a 1 in 250,000 chance of dying (like me) need the vaccine every year?

@ParlezVousWronglais

..every year. Now reporting in Daily Mail and Guardian.

Flu vaccine is updated each year but we only vaccinate the most vulnerable. Realistically how are we going to keep vaccinating the whole population every year?

Naughty title 🤦‍♀️

By September onwards they will set up a regular system like with the flu jab but on a bigger scale. If needed.

Bit of a none subject really. Annual vaccination not difficult.

It’s hard to imagine an endless cycle of mass vaccination.

With flu they get about 15 million done a year. Even that is short of what they’re aiming for.

I guess it’s possible they may get enough done to keep hospital admissions manageable. It’s not really clear though is it.

What they're reporting is Professor Anthony Harndern (deputy chair of the jcvi) in an interview on Sky saying:

"We may well be in a situation where we have to have an annual coronavirus vaccine much like we do with the flu vaccine, but the public should be reassured that these technologies are relatively easy to edit and tweak, so once we find strains that are predominant, the vaccines can be altered.

At the moment it is really good news that these vaccines we are delivering at the moment do seem to be effective against the major circulating strains and the variant strains in the UK at the moment."

And yes, of course we can do this every year if the alternative is annual lockdowns.

I'm sure if it's necessary to do a wider target group they can put the staff and facilities in place, be a shite side cheaper than what's going on at present.

@ChocOrange1

We wouldnt vaccinate the whole population every year, just the most vulnerable like with flu. Why would people with a 1 in 250,000 chance of dying (like me) need the vaccine every year?

They are trying to vaccinate everyone though. The vaccine ‘tzar’ says it will be offered to every adult by September.

I guess moving forward major effort will be made to get the old and vulnerable done with it being an option for everyone else.

There’s also long Covid to think about. I bet a lot of younger people won’t want to take the risk, although a lot aren’t bothered.

I can’t see a any problem. I just pop into Tesco’s pharmacy for my flu jab every year, when it’s free. In future I’ll just get 2 jabs instead of 1. It won’t take any more time. It will cost a little extra but it is a cost I will prioritise.

I mean, when the pharmacy is free, not the jab

Why would we vaccinate the whole population each year? Just the ones vulnerable surely ?

I believe they are trying to vaccinate everyone this year to calm the fear and get the population out and about, back to work, spending etc. When the time is right.

There’s also long Covid to think about. I bet a lot of younger people won’t want to take the risk, although a lot aren’t bothered.
People could pay to have the jab at boots, like they do with the flu vaccine.

In an ideal situation it would be possible to combine with the flu jab as the demographic is the same, so people would go in October time and get both flu and Covid vaccines.

The only exception being the young children who get the flu nasal spray and wouldn't need the Covid vaccine, unless the Covid vaccine can also prevent transmission in which case there would be potential benefit in vaccinating children to stop them being super spreaders like they do with flu.

Wow - way to create a scare-mongery headline from some positive news. You should think about creative writing OP.

There’s also long Covid to think about. I bet a lot of younger people won’t want to take the risk, although a lot aren’t bothered.

They're probably not bothered because their risk is very low. Sounds logical to me.

We’ll do it by vaccinating the whole population every year. Something we’ll have practiced by vaccinating the whole population this year

Don’t scaremonger. It’s unkind to the many already anxious people on here. And it’s stupid. 🙄

I imagine they would reduce the free vaccination to the vulnerable group that gets the free flu jab and make the Covid jabs available to the wider public for a fee. It would mean 3 times the current flu programme running each year so that could be something that needs resourcing over and above the usual flu jab roll out.

ffs. What utter click bait.

Have you not been reading op? The flu vaccine is different every year. This is a virus and I expect there to be a slightly altered vaccine every year, just like flu. There is literally no reason to start a thread about this as it's the biggest non newsworthy subject ever.

Isn’t there a large facility being built right now (in Oxford, I think?) that is designed to be able to manufacture 70-80 million doses of vaccine a year?

@knittingaddict

ffs. What utter click bait.

Have you not been reading op? The flu vaccine is different every year. This is a virus and I expect there to be a slightly altered vaccine every year, just like flu. There is literally no reason to start a thread about this as it's the biggest non newsworthy subject ever.

Yes did you not read where I said the flu vaccine is altered every year? I know that.

But is the strategy to go for herd immunity with this one? Because that would require far more annual coverage than the 15 million people vaccinated for flu.

You should think about creative writing OP.

If only. But the title was part of a headline exactly as it appeared in the DM. So I can’t take the credit for that.

77 cases of South African Covid variant have been found in UK (and nine of a Brazilian mutant) - as experts warn new vaccines might be needed EVERY year
www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9181165/UK-77-cases-South-African-COVID-variant-9-Brazilian-minister-says.html

I have just read[cant remember where but I can probably find it if I have to] that they may combine the flu jab with the covid one.