Covid-19 vaccinations in New Zealand: An unfolding tragedy?
Did the vaccination campaigns actually SPREAD the virus?
Between January 2020 and October 4th, 2021, New Zealand recorded 27 Covid-19 deaths and 4,050 cases. It was widely praised for its approach in "eliminating the virus" [1]. During this period, every time there was any indication of community transmission, New Zealand enforced strict restrictions only to ease them once community transmission was eliminated. [2] In October of 2021, following an outbreak and after about 75% of the population aged 12+ had been vaccinated with at least 1 dose of the vaccine, and about half were fully vaccinated, New Zealand finally gave up on its Covid "elimination strategy", arguing that Delta variant was the game changer and that NZ was transitioning into a new phase with the availability of vaccines [3].
Massive Covid-19 waves after vast majority of population vaccinated
By the time New Zealand had fully vaccinated about 90% of it's population above the age of 12, on February 12th, 2022, New Zealand had recorded 53 Covid-19 deaths and 19,400 cases. However, massive Covid-19 waves followed, and by September 3rd, 2023, New Zealand had recorded over 2.45 million cases and 4,746 deaths. This implies that approximately 99% of Covid-19 cases and deaths in New Zealand have been recorded in almost 19 months following vaccination of about 90% of the population aged above 12 years of age.
Several examples have been covered here using publicly available data and published research to argue that Covid-19 vaccinations triggered massive Covid-19 waves. New Zealand comes across as one such example. An illustration of Covid-19 deaths in the graph below indicates New Zealand had one of the highest Covid-19 mortality in the Oceania region, 15 times higher than Papua New Guinea, which has the lowest vaccination rate of 4% in the region. [4] What would the Covid-19 numbers look like in the absence of vaccination? Would we have witnessed such massive Covid waves? Why has Papua New Guinea not experienced a massive "Omicron" wave similar to other regions that are highly vaccinated?
Is it possible to quantify the harms to the vaccinated?
Based on publicly available data [5], we observe the below
In the above 12 age group, where about 90% of the population is vaccinated, about 96% of the cases are vaccinated, including 95% that are fully vaccinated or boosted.
About 88% of all Covid deaths to date i.e. 4,176 deaths (out of 4,746) were fully vaccinated or boosted.
Per a response to a Freedom of Information request on all cause mortality, over 91% of all deaths in 2022 were vaccinated. [6]
As of April 2023 - there have been 3,818 vaccine injury compensation claims, out of which 1,541 have been compensated for a total of NZ$ 5.6 million. [7]
As of November 2022, over 61,000 post vaccination adverse events were reported, out of which 3,688 were classified as serious.
These AEFI come with a string attached around "causal association" , but do serve as a data signal, especially when looked at in the context of vaccine injury claims highlighted above. [8]
What should one make of results like the above for a product that was claimed as safe and 100% effective against severe Covid-19 disease? [9][10]
https://www.trialsitenews.com/a/covid-19-vaccinations-in-new-zealand-an-unfolding-tragedy-d9a61e5a
**************************************************CDC Says Existing COVID Antibodies Work Against New Variant
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Sept. 8 said research shows that antibodies produced by a prior COVID-19 infection or existing vaccines were good enough to protect against a new variant that has been found in the United States.
The CDC suggested in its update that the data are “encouraging” for the latest COVID-19 vaccine booster shot, which is currently being reviewed by federal health agencies. The Food and Drug Administration is scheduled to authorize updated vaccines that target subvariants of Omicron.
“Early research data from multiple labs are reassuring and show that existing antibodies work against the new BA.2.86 variant,” the CDC stated in an update on Sept. 8. “These data are also encouraging because of what it may mean for the effectiveness of the 2023–2024 COVID-19 vaccine, which is currently under review. That’s because the vaccine is tailored to the currently circulating variants.”
The public health agency added that the new BA.2.86 lineage of COVID-19 was not driving the small recent increases in cases and hospitalizations in the United States, which the agency attributed to other predominantly circulating viruses.
Since the CDC’s initial risk assessment in August, BA.2.86 had been identified in nine U.S. states as of Sept. 8. The Omicron offshoot has also been identified from both human and wastewater specimens in countries Japan, the UK, and Canada.
“Additionally, based on CDC’s experience with past SARS-CoV-2 variants, people will likely have protection against severe disease mediated by both cellular and antibody immunity,” the agency stated. “Real-world data are needed to fully understand the impact given the complexities of the immune response to this variant. Additional studies on this are ongoing, and we expect to learn more in upcoming weeks.”
Earlier CDC Statements
The CDC stated in late August that the new COVID-19 variant may be more capable than older variants of causing infection in people who have previously had COVID-19 or who have received vaccines.
At the time, the health agency said that it was too soon to determine whether BA.2.86 could cause more severe illness in people than previous variants. It noted that there are a high number of mutations with the lineage and cited concerns about the effectiveness of vaccines and prior infection.
“The large number of mutations in this variant raises concerns of greater escape from existing immunity from vaccines and previous infections compared with other recent variants,” the CDC stated in its assessment in August. “For example, one analysis of mutations suggests the difference may be as large as or greater than that between BA.2 and XBB.1.5, which circulated nearly a year apart.”
But officials noted at the time that “virus samples are not yet broadly available for more reliable laboratory testing of antibodies, and it is too soon to know the real-world impacts on immunity.”
The assessment said that most of the American population possesses COVID-19 antibodies from a prior infection, vaccination, or both. It’s likely that the antibodies will provide some protection against the latest variant, it stated at the time.
Around the same time, a high-level official with the World Health Organization designated the BA.2.86 a “variant under monitoring,” saying there was “limited” information about it. But some researchers said that people shouldn’t jump to any conclusions, noting that a number of other COVID-19 strains had little impact.
“Intrinsic severity of a virus is a byproduct of many traits, a product of selection on other features. Any attempt to guess the intrinsic severity of BA.2.86 (within reasonable parameters) is just that—a guess,” Aris Katzourakis, a biologist with the University of Oxford, said via social media in August. “It is far, far too early to evaluate the potential of this variant.”
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Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo warns Americans NOT to take latest COVID booster and claims there are 'red flags' over its safety
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis' hand-picked surgeon general has warned against getting the new COVID-19 booster vaccine that is expected to receive approval in the coming days.
The state's Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo made the claims at a press conference on Thursday, saying there was no evidence to support getting the shot and that there are 'red flags' about its safety.
The updated shots, which target an Omicron subvariant named XBB.1.5, are awaiting FDA approval on standards for safety, effectiveness and quality, and must then receive CDC sign-off, which could come as early as Tuesday.
'Listen inside to what makes sense, what feels right, you know, what feels like truth,' said Lapado, offering his advice on receiving the shots.
'We all know it when we feel it inside.' Lapado went on to claim global studies showed people who had the boosters were more likely to catch COVID itself.
DeSantis joined Lapado at the event and did not offer a specific opinion on the booster, but slammed federal regulators at the FDA and CDC as corrupt, claiming they 'have basically become an arm of Big Pharma.'
Ladapo's previous warnings against older versions of the COVID-19 vaccines drew a harsh rebuke from the two agencies in March, when they published an open letter accusing him of 'fueling vaccine hesitancy'.
'Based on available information for the COVID-19 vaccines that are authorized or approved in the United States, the known and potential benefits of these vaccines clearly outweigh their known and potential risks,' the letter said.
'It is the job of public health officials around the country to protect the lives of the populations they serve, particularly the vulnerable. Fueling vaccine hesitancy undermines this effort,' added the letter, signed by FDA Commissioner Robert Califf and then-CDC Director Rochelle Walensky.
Approval of the updated COVID-19 booster shots is expected within days. Pfizer, Moderna and Novavax all have manufactured new versions of the vaccine.
Similar to how flu shots are updated each year, the FDA gave COVID-19 vaccine makers a new recipe, targeting the variant that was dominant over the summer.
But as expected, the XBB.1.5 variant it targets has faded away in the months it took to tweak the vaccine.
CDC estimates show XBB.1.5 is responsible for about 3 percent of current cases, while a soup of other newer Omicron variants dominates, led by EG.5 at about 20 percent.
FDA vaccine adviser Dr Paul Offit says healthy young people don't need another Covid booster
Dr Paul Offit, who advises the FDA on a range of shots for infectious diseases, told DailyMail.com middle-aged and younger Americans who do not have chronic diseases already had strong enough immunity through previous Covid vaccines and infections to prevent severe illness this winter.
In his remarks at Thursday's event, held inside an Irish pub in Jacksonville, DeSantis vowed Florida would not be temporarily closing schools or mandating mask-wearing because of the recent uptick in COVID-19 cases.
'People are lurching toward this insanity again,' DeSantis said. 'As we see these things being orchestrated ... there needs to be pushback.'
The Florida governor is also hoping his message in the Sunshine State resonates on the campaign trail as he seeks the GOP nomination for president.
Soon after the Thursday press conference, his presidential campaign sent out an email to supporters vowing to 'fight back against every bogus attempt the Left makes to expand government control' when it comes to COVID-19 precautions.
He also appeared on Fox News that evening, saying: 'No mask mandates, no mandates on school children, no COVID vax mandates.'
DeSantis' news conference in Jacksonville came almost two weeks after three black people were fatally shot there by a 21-year-old white supremacist who authorities say left behind ramblings that read like 'the diary of a madman.'
As DeSantis took questions at Thursday's news conference, an unidentified man spoke out, saying the governor had 'allowed weapons to fill the street' and was to blame for the shootings.
'I did not allow anything with that,' DeSantis fired back angrily. 'I'm not going to let you accuse me of committing criminal activity. I'm not going to take that!'
'You have allowed people to hunt people like me,' continued the audience member, who was black, prompting a visibly angry DeSantis to respond: 'Oh, that is nonsense. That is such nonsense.'
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Also see my other blogs. Main ones below:
http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)
http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)
http://pcwatch.blogspot.com (POLITICAL CORRECTNESS WATCH)
http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)
http://snorphty.blogspot.com (TONGUE-TIED)
https://immigwatch.blogspot.com (IMMIGRATION WATCH)
https://awesternheart.blogspot.com (THE PSYCHOLOGIST)
http://jonjayray.com/blogall.html More blogs
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