JAKARTA - In the midst of the skyrocketing COVID-19 cases in Indonesia, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced that people who have been vaccinated can still be exposed to the delta variant of COVID-19. However, the WHO says that the Covid-19 vaccination can still protect the majority of people from serious illnesses that can cause death.
"Reports are coming in that the vaccinated population has cases of infection, especially with the delta variant", said Dr. Soumya Swaminathan, head of the WHO team of scientists in an official statement on Monday, July 12.
"Most of them are mild or asymptomatic infections", Swaminathan said as quoted by CNBC International.
However, the number of people exposed to the delta variant of COVID-19 is spreading rapidly around the world. Mostly in areas with low vaccination rates causing the delta variant to spread easily.
Officials in the United States revealed that almost all hospitalizations and deaths from COVID-19 were experienced by those who were not vaccinated. About 75 percent of those who died in hospital from the Coronavirus after vaccination were those over the age of 65. The information was reported by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“The delta variant is spreading around the world at a rapid rate, driving new spikes in cases and deaths. However, not all places are hit the same way", said WHO Secretary-General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
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"We are in the midst of a two-track pandemic that is evolving where the rich and the poor are in and in some countries increasingly different in places where vaccination coverage is high".
Ghebreyesus also explained that the delta variant spreads rapidly and infects vulnerable people who are not protected. In addition, Swaminathan warned that people who have been vaccinated can still be exposed to COVID-19 and can transmit it to others.
Therefore, WHO instructs people to continue to wear masks and implement health protocols. "But of course it reduces the chances of severe hospitalization and death significantly".
Several studies have shown that people who are exposed to COVID-19 after being vaccinated are stronger than those who are not vaccinated. This is considered to reduce the spread of the virus to other people. However, WHO officials stressed that further research is needed to understand the impact of vaccines on the transmission of the Coronavirus.
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