AstraZeneca has no effect against symptomatic Omicron

A study by the UK Health and Security Agency (UKHSA), undertaken a time when infections are at an all-time high, revealed that AstraZeneca has no effect against symptomatic Omicron 20 weeks after the second jab. The study also showed that the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, effectiveness dropped to 10% after the same period.
The news has not been welcomed by the the head of the NHS Confederation who said that the health service was facing a “perfect storm” of rising COVID hospital admissions and illness alongside increasing staff absences.
Infections in the UK surged to 2.3 million before Christmas according to latest official data with infection figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showing an increase from 1.4 million in the week to 23 December. This is the rate since comparable records began in autumn 2020.
The good news is that boosters were found to be effective by the study reducing the risk of hospitalisation, rising to an 81% reduction after receipt of the third jab.
According to the study, despite reports that Omicron is not as dangerous as other variants, it was now the main causes for people being hospitalised accounting for around two thirds of coronavirus hospitalisations.
Health secretary Sajid Javid referring to the report that AstraZeneca has no effect against symptomatic Omicron, said the analysis showed that unvaccinated people were up to eight times more likely to end up in hospital with COVID-19 than people who had recently had a booster.

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