Over half of new COVID-19 cases now ‘breakthrough’ of vaccinated individuals

Breakthrough cases double in Clark County as Omicron wave hits.

Breakthrough cases double in Clark County as Omicron wave hits

In September, nearly 20 percent of Clark County’s COVID-19 cases were among the vaccinated. These “breakthrough” cases were an indication that the current vaccinations did not “protect” individuals from getting sick from the coronavirus. By the end of December, 43 percent of county cases were either fully or partially vaccinated people, according to Clark County Public Health (CCPH).

The Washington Department of Health (DOH) updated statewide breakthrough cases late Wednesday, showing a 43 percent increase over the previous reporting period. In the past year, there have been 123,365 breakthrough cases in the state, with 3 percent of those individuals being hospitalized according to the report.

Reports of breakthrough cases raised concerns about the effectiveness of vaccinations. This coincided with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) changing the definition of “vaccine” from providing “immunity” from a pathogen to offering “protection.” 

The Omicron variant of the COVID-19 coronavirus has hit the U.S. and Washington state. In Clark County, the Public Health department reported 1,493 new cases between Dec. 23 and 29. By Jan. 6, that had more than doubled to 3,261 confirmed and probable cases.

The Omicron variant appears to be the majority of new cases in the state. Early reports indicate it has much less severe symptoms, but is far more transmissible than the Delta variant that spread this summer and fall.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports 98 percent of COVID-19 cases are from the Omicron variant. It is much more transmissible than previous variants of the coronavirus, but has much milder symptoms. Graphic courtesy CDC
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports 98 percent of COVID-19 cases are from the Omicron variant. It is much more transmissible than previous variants of the coronavirus, but has much milder symptoms. Graphic courtesy CDC

Omicron was responsible for 98.3 percent of new coronavirus cases in the United States last week, according to estimates posted Tuesday by the CDC. Dr. Anthony Fauci said the highly contagious variant will “find just about everybody.’’

“Omicron, with its extraordinary, unprecedented degree of efficiency of transmissibility, will ultimately find just about everybody,” Fauci said. “Those who have been vaccinated … and boosted would get exposed. Some, maybe a lot of them, will get infected but will very likely, with some exceptions, do reasonably well in the sense of not having hospitalization and death.”

The vaccines appear to not prevent the spread of Omicron, if the early reports continue to be true. Both vaccinated and unvaccinated people are now getting COVID-19 according to to the DOH. Officials share that the vaccinated are less likely to be hospitalized or experience “severe” symptoms.

The Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla has revealed that two doses of the current COVID-19 vaccine offer “very limited protection, if any” against Omicron. His firm is working on an Omicron specific vaccine they hope to present to the FDA in March. 

The “breakthrough” cases, as they have become known, appear to now be half the total new cases in the state. Comparing a Dec. 21 report with a Dec. 14 report, the DOH shows that 51 percent of new cases appear to be breakthrough.cases of previously vaccinated people.

The DOH reports 86,237 SARS-CoV-2 vaccine breakthrough cases have been identified in Washington state through Dec. 11 in a Dec. 22 report. Of the cases that have data available (approximately 50 percent): 87 percent reported symptoms and 8 percent were hospitalized. They report 851 people died of COVID-related illness since January 2021.

South Africa is where Omicron originated. The prolific Omicron wave appears to be subsiding there just as quickly as it grew.

New reports indicate Omicron is even more transmissible. Preliminary findings from two South African clinical trials suggest the Omicron coronavirus variant has a much higher rate of “asymptomatic carriage” than earlier variants, which could explain why it has spread so rapidly across the globe. 

The studies — one of which was carried out when Omicron infections were surging in South Africa last month and another which resampled participants around the same time — found a far greater number of people tested positive for the coronavirus but were not showing symptoms compared to previous trials.

Clark County Public Health reports 38.7 percent of COVID-19 cases were fully vaccinated, and another 4.9 percent were partially vaccinated. That is double the rate from September, as the Omicron variant sweeps through the county. Graphic courtesy Clark County Public Health
Clark County Public Health reports 38.7 percent of COVID-19 cases were fully vaccinated, and another 4.9 percent were partially vaccinated. That is double the rate from September, as the Omicron variant sweeps through the county. Graphic courtesy Clark County Public Health

One study showed a 31 percent positivity rate, and the other showed a 16 percent level of positive cases. Previous studies, prior to Omicron, indicated a 1 to 2 percent positivity rate for the Moderna vaccine, and a 2.6 percent positivity rate for the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. 

South Africa experienced a surge in COVID-19 infections from late November, around the time its scientists alerted the world to Omicron. But new cases have since fallen back and early indications are that the wave has been marked by less serious disease than earlier ones.

“I think it’s hard to process what’s actually happening right now, which is: most people are going to get COVID,” acting FDA Commissioner Janet Woodcock said Tuesday at a Senate committee hearing. “And what we need to do is make sure the hospitals can still function, transportation, you know, other essential services are not disrupted while this happens.”

Early Treatment

Early treatment appears to be the key to dealing with getting any variant of COVID-19. “When you do get this virus, get treatment,” said Vancouver resident Bryan White on social media. “Don’t wait. Just get started taking care of yourself.”

White got the coronavirus in early January. He used budesonide treatment with a nebulizer, boosted his intake of several vitamins, and took melatonin to help his immune system. White also used ivermectin to fight the virus.

By the fourth day, his blood oxygen was consistently above 95 percent when walking around. It stayed at 99 percent while he was seated. “Early treatment works,” White said.

The state DOH says “COVID-19 vaccines are effective and critical tools to aid in the control of this pandemic. Large scale clinical studies found that COVID-19 vaccines prevented most people from getting COVID-19 illness, but like most other vaccines, they are not 100 percent effective. This means some fully vaccinated people will still get infected with SARS-CoV-2. These individuals may or may not develop COVID-19 symptoms.”

Clark County Public Health shows hospitalizations by vaccination status since March 2021. COVID-19 hospital admissions are down from their peak in August. There has been a decline from a December increase in Omicron hospitalizations. Graphic courtesy Clark County Public Health
Clark County Public Health shows hospitalizations by vaccination status since March 2021. COVID-19 hospital admissions are down from their peak in August. There has been a decline from a December increase in Omicron hospitalizations. Graphic courtesy Clark County Public Health

CCPH currently reports 12 percent of hospital beds are occupied by patients with COVID-19. Just under 25 percent of intensive care unit beds are occupied by patients with the virus.

Here in Clark County, there are several resources available to help citizens who test positive for COVID-19. Earlytreatment.com offers information to citizens on the virus and treatments. Clarkcovidhelp.com also has information.

Latest COVID news:

8 Comments

  1. Fools

    John Ley strikes again with the misinformation and non-treatments. The data he presents shows that vaccines work yet still makes the case that all infections are the same. When 50% of new infections are in vaccinated individuals, but they represent less than 5% of hospitalizations, how can you stand by this snake oil? This site will single handedly turn Clark County blue lol.

    Reply
    1. Melissa

      So covid vaccines a) reduce symptoms, b) allowing for asymptomatic infection, c) while not lowering viral load, d) meaning that asymptomatic, vaccinated individuals are spreading covid without knowing it? Hmmm…That might be why high vaccination rates in countries, states, regions are always followed by high case rates. And given that we were sold this vaccine to “slow the spread” and told that we had a moral duty to “protect Grandma,” the fact that vaccinated people account for 50% of current cases and in fact contribute to (and perhaps even drive) the spread of covid is an unfortunate fact that we are all going to have to deal with. One way to deal with it is to move the goal post and say that vaccines still reduce hospitalizations and deaths. (The statement is true at this point, but based on data from countries that vaccinated earlier than us, it won’t be true for much longer either.) While the facts in this article make you angry, they are none the less facts.

      Reply
  2. Margaret

    Scientist surprised by discovery of ‘99%’ effective, cheap COVID treatmentUniversity of Florida researcher tells WND people already reporting results from Benadryl.
    Covid-19 RCT: Honey and black cumin seed help speed up recovery in Covid-19 patients25-Nov-2020 By Guan Yu Lim
    A randomised-controlled trial that is awaiting peer review suggests that Covid-19 patients who received a combination of honey and Nigella sativa recovered more quickly than those given a placebo.
    https://www.nutraingredients-asia.com/Article/2020/11/25/Covid-19-RCT-Honey-and-black-cumin-seed-help-speed-up-recovery-in-Covid-19-patients

    Reply
  3. Margaret

    DOH Vaccine Breakthrough Report has been updated.
    (data from January 17, 2021 – January 01, 2022)
    123,365 SARS-CoV-2 vaccine breakthrough cases identified in Washington State.
    Of the cases that have data available:
    – 38% reported symptoms
    – 3% were hospitalized
    – 919 people died of COVID-related illness

    The criteria for identifying vaccine breakthrough cases include a positive lab test (either a PCR test or an antigen test) at least 14 days AFTER a person received their last recommended dose of an authorized COVID-19 vaccine.
    (The 14 days following covid vaccine injection are a peak time for hospitalization and deaths. Serious adverse events are more common after a second dose of a 2-part series)

    As reported by CHD, 7-Year-Old Dies 11 Days After Pfizer Shot, VAERS Report ShowsOf the 9,778 U.S. deaths reported after covid vaccination as of Dec. 31, 24% occurred within 48 hours of vaccination and 61% occurred in people who experienced an onset of symptoms within 48 hours of being vaccinated.

    Reply
    1. Melissa

      Recommend checking out the new Washington DOH report 241-024 Reported Covid-19 Reinfections in Washington State. This report represents the first time WA DOH has tracked reinfection (natural immunity). Finally, we have some data to work with! Between Sept. 1, 2021 and Dec. 26, 2021, there were 2,630 cases where previously-infected, unvaccinated residents got a second covid reinfection (natural immunity failure). During the same period of time, it looks like approximately 94,000 vaccine breakthrough cases (vaccine immunity failure). Data not normalized, but a rough estimate suggests vaccines breakthroughs (25 per 100,000) are about 3x more likely than naturally immune reinfections (9 per 100,000). Given this estimate, I would NOT expect that public health will be eager to divulge normalized rates.

      Reply
  4. Anne Boylon

    I voted incorrectly about the capital gains tax issue, so I voted again. I had read it wrong. I appreciate all the information published in your newspaper about these political issues and about the covid. Thank you all. You are a beacon for truth.

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *