TrialSite (TS News) continues to chronicle surges of COVID-19 in heavily vaccinated national populations, including some of the deadliest surge of SARS-CoV-2 since the onset of the pandemic. From Australia and New Zealand to South Korea and now China, highly transmissible variants such as Omicron and BA.2 at least, in some locations exaggerate existing vaccine durability challenges intensifying localized or regional viral surges. Twice as many people have died from COVID-19 this year in Australia (and the year is less than four months old) than in the previous two years there. How is that possible?
As reported by TS News, just over a week ago regions in Australia experience growing numbers of not only breakthrough infections but also breakthrough hospitalizations and even deaths, such as in the Australian state of Queensland. TS News has been reporting on a disturbing trend in some heavily vaccinated populations such as in Australia, where SARS-CoV-2 infections, hospitalizations, and even death are higher now than at any time during the pandemic.
Now, mainstream media is reporting on part of the problem. Recently writing for The Guardian, Donna Lu and Benita Kolovos report that twice as many people in Australia have died in 2022 than in 2020 and 2021 combined, yet most people were vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2 for this period.
Also press such as the Sydney Morning Herald report on prominent breakthrough infections and associated hospitalizations. For example, although fully vaccinated, one of the children of the Premier of West Australia, Mark McGowan, has been hospitalized due to COVID-19 infection, now in serious condition. McGowan himself, also fully vaccinated, also tested positive for COVID-19 and now isolates at home. Hospitalizations have been rising steadily since the new year despite the heavy vaccination, as acknowledged by Reuters.
Record COVID-19 Deaths in 2022
The UK media reports that according to Australian federal health records, the government reports 6,786 deaths associated with COVID-19 from the start of the pandemic to April 18, 2022. Yet of all these reported COVID-19 deaths, 4,547 deaths occurred in 2022—more than double the 2,239 deaths recorded during the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic. Of course, in 2020 there was no COVID-19 vaccine until the end of the year and as reported in this media Australians were slow to embrace the vaccine.
By the Fall of 2021, mass vaccination was underway and today nearly 85% of the population is fully vaccinated with a boost rate now of about 52%, one of the higher such rates in the world.
Interestingly, neither The Guardian nor other mainstream media are addressing what seems to be an elephant in the room—the waning impact of the vaccines to stop severe disease and death, at least in some communities.
The Guardian reporters quote a biostatistician from the University of South Australia, Adrian Esterman, who is unsurprised by the deaths due to “…the high transmission of COVID in recent months.” Not mentioning the fact that the population is heavily vaccinated, Esterman blames the deaths on a relaxation of policies around protection, such as not wearing face masks or not adhering to social distancing measures.
Contradictory Elements?
TS News reports here the contradictory forces at play in mainstream media reporting. First, Professor Esterman was quoted by The Guardian “Unfortunately, the virus doesn’t know that. We’re still seeing thousands of people being infected; we’re seeing many, many people ending up in the hospital.”
According to Our World in Data, Australia experiences record hospitalization in the first few months of 2022. Yet Esterman goes on, “Yes it’s not long an absolute acute emergency like it was, because we have a larger percentage of our population vaccinated and we’ve got better treatments.”
Yet TS News must ask the questions: if the situation isn’t an emergency, and the vaccines are working well, why is Australia experiencing record hospitalizations and deaths with such a heavily vaccinated population?
Esterman’s answer—a third jab. The professor announced, “That third dose is critical. We need to get that up to nearly 100%” emphasizing that those 65 and up should be getting their “fourth COVID jab as soon as possible.”