The Washington Post - USA (2022-03-02)

A4 EZ RE THEWASHINGTONPOST.WEDNESDAY,MARCH 2 , 2022

BYLENAH.SUN

ANDLAURIEMCGINLEY

ThePfizer-BioNTechvaccine’s
abilitytoprevent coronavirus in-
fections in children5to11years
oldwanedovertimealthoughthe
shotcontinuedtoprotectagainst
the mostserious outcomes,in-
cludinghospitalization and
death, even as omicronsurged,
newlyreleaseddatashows.
Data releasedTuesdaybythe
Centersfor DiseaseControland
Preventionandseparatefindings
from the NewYork State Health
Department aday earlier,ina
study not yetpeer-reviewed, pro-
vide some of the firstreal-world
evidenceof how the vaccine is
workinginU.S.childrenandado-
lescents.
Thedataare broadlyconsis-
tentwithreal-worldeffectiveness
data for adults showingthatpro-
tectionfromtwodosesdiminish-
es over time, but thatinpeople
eligibleforabooster,athirddose
revs the immunesystem back up
to robustlevels. In children, as
withadults,vaccineeffectiveness
fadedduringomicronandgener-
allydecreasesrelativetothetime
sincevaccination.
Theresearch provides an
evolving picture of the vaccine’s
performance in children, and
some experts said it suggested a
need to considerincreasingthe

size of the dose 5-to-11-year-olds

receive.

Pediatric infections and hospi-

talizations reachedtheir highest

rateinJanuary,when omicron

sweptthe country.Its higher

transmissibilitymeantmorepeo-

ple—includingthevaccinated—

werelikelytobeinfected.Despite

this increasein infections and

hospitalization, data show coro-

navirus vaccines continued to

protect5-to-17-year-oldsagainst

severeillness,hospitalizationand

death.

ThePfizer-BioNTechvaccineis

the only shot authorizedfor chil-

dren 5to11inthe United States.

That group receivesa10-micro-

gram dose while those 12 and

olderget30micrograms.

“Weknewfromthe adultdata

that’sbeen publishedpreviously

thatthe vaccine provides less

protectionversusomicronthanit

did againstdelta, and Ithink

we’recontinuingto see thatpat-

terninchildren,”saidRuthLink-

Gelles, who leads CDC’s team on

effectivenessof coronavirus vac-

cines.

“Wealso know from the adult

data again thatvaccineprovides

much better protection against

severedisease.Andweareseeing,

Ithink,thatsame pattern in

children,”Link-Gellessaid.

Experts said the messagefor

parentsis thatevenifvaccine

efficacydeclinesover time, “it is

stillbetterthanbeingunvaccinat-

ed, and it is better for you to

vaccinate your children,”said

John P. Moore, aprofessor of

microbiologyandimmunologyat

WeillCornellMedicine.

Link-Gelles, who has adaugh-

ter not yeteligible for vaccina-

tion, said she found the data

reassuring.

“Everytime there’s anew vari-

ant, we worrythatthe vaccine

will provideno protection at all,”

Link-Gellessaid.“Andthatiscer-

tainly not the case here. ...The

infection cases are less concern-

ingtomeasaparent.WhatIwant

toavoidaremidnightemergency

roomvisits,hospitalizationsand,

obviously,death.AndIthinkthat

these data do show thatwe’re

continuing to see protection

againstthoseoutcomes.”

JesseHackell,apediatricianin

RocklandCounty, N.Y.,said his

advice to parentswill remainthe

same.

“Thevaccineisextraordinarily

safe, and it protects againstthe

rare but seriousillnesses,”Hack-

ell said in an email. “There is no

downsideto giving it, even if the

efficacyisless than hoped —one

isSTILLbetteroffhavinghadthe

vaccine than not, even if the

benefitissmaller.”

Thelatestdataonefficacyin

5-to-11-year-oldscome after de-

velopments involvingshots for

children younger than 5. The

FoodandDrugAdministrationin

Januarysaiditwouldreviewdata

for atwo-doseregimenin hopes

of swiftauthorization and then

add athird dose after data on a

boosterbecameavailable.

Buttheagencyreversedcourse

in mid-February, after receiving

disappointingdata on twodoses.

Itannounceditwouldnotmakea

decisionon whether to authorize

acoronavirus vaccine for chil-

drenyoungerthan5untildataon

athirddosebecomesavailable.

That means the vaccine is un-

likelytobeavailableuntilatleast

mid-April.

Some experts said the recent

findings raise additional ques-

tions about the dose neededfor

youngerchildren.DatafromNew

York state“strongly suggest that

the lower vaccine dose given to

5-to-11-year-oldsis not inducing

thestrongprotectiveimmunere-

sponseswe see in older children

and adults,”said AlbertKo, an

infectious-diseasesphysicianand

epidemiologistattheYaleUniver-

sitySchoolofPublicHealth.

Thedata“doesn’t feel settled,”

said Natalie E. Dean, an Emory

Universitybiostatistician. “This

maywellbeathree-dosevaccine.

...We’restillpiecingthistogether.

It’s goingtotakeafew more

studies.”

TheCDCreleasedtwoanalyses

Tuesday. Onereportevaluated

the protection affordedby the

Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine against

emergencydepartment and ur-

gent care visits in 10 states from

April 2021 throughJanuary. It

showedthe vaccine was protec-

tive againsthospitalization and

death in 5-to-17-year-olds,even

afteromicronemerged.

Amongthefindings:

lAfter twodoses, the vaccine

initiallywas 92 percent to 94

percenteffectivefor12-to-17-year-

olds againsthospitalization dur-

ingthedeltaandomicronwaves.

But protection againsthospital-

ization faded more than five

months after getting the second

shot, with effectivenessfalling to

arangeof73percentto 88 per-

cent.

lChildren5to11yearsoldwere

noteligibleforvaccineuntilearly

November2021 so did not be-

come fully vaccinated until mid-

December,asomicron surged.

Twenty-threevaccinatedchildren

were hospitalizedwith covid-like

symptomsduring the study peri-

od,butonlytwowereinfected.By

comparison,262 unvaccinated

childrenwere hospitalized,and

59wereinfected.

lTwodosesofthevaccinewere

about 51 percenteffective in pre-

venting5-to-11-year-oldsfromgo-

ing to emergencydepartments

and urgent care centersas omi-

cron spread, the CDCstudy

found. Forfully vaccinated 12-to-

17-year-olds, protection ranged

between 34 percent for older

teens and 45 percentfor younger

adolescentsfor the same period.

Forolder teens who received

boosters, protection rose to 81

percent.

In aseparateCDC analysisof

surveillancedata from 29 juris-

dictions,vaccinatedchildrenand

adolescentswere less likely to be

infected than those who were

unvaccinated,despiteadeclinein

protection againstinfection dur-

ing the omicronsurge. Unvacci-

nated 5-to-11-year-oldswere 1.

times more likely to getinfected

duringJanuary, comparedwith

those who were vaccinated; un-

vaccinated 12-to-17-year-olds

were 1.5 times more likely to get

infected.

That analysis identified nine

covid deaths in vaccinated chil-

dren 5to17years old between

April 4, 2021, and Jan. 1, com-

pared with 121 deaths among

unvaccinatedchildren.

NewYork statedatareleased

Monday, which is about one-

tenth the size of the population

analyzedin the CDC surveillance

data, showedarapid and steep

drop in vaccines preventingin-

fection in 5-to-11-year-oldscom-

paredwithadolescents.

CDC: Pfizer vaccine’s potency for kids 5to11wanes, but halts serious cases

ered,buthesaidmasksshouldbe

required when people go to

stores, schools,churchesor any-

whereelsetheywillbeinproxim-

itytoagroup.Vaccinated or not,

hesaid,“themaskisthelast,last

defense. ...Ithink it should be

mandated.”

In Tupelo, Miss., JeremyMc-

Mahan,46,alsoisnotvaccinated.

He is White,aRepublicanand

ownshisownbusiness,AllAmer-

ican Roofing.Hehas gotten the

coronavirustwice and wasn’t

verysickeithertime. Hissecond

case, in early January, “wasas

mild as the changeofseasons —

justalittledrippynose,”hesaid.

Duringthe firstmonths of the

pandemic,McMahan said, he

stayedoutofhiscustomers’hous-

es.Butsincelastyear,hehadbeen

goingbackinside,drinkingsweet

tea and talkingabout children

andchurchbeforegettingaround

totalkingaboutroofs.Hesaidhis

fiancee, an administrator at a

140-bed Tupelo nursing home,

wears amask at workand gets

tested but doesn’t takeprecau-

tionsoutsideofthat.

He feels safe in his small city,

he said. Even when he was in

Dallas recently,“Ididn’t seelots

of masks, didn’t see people shel-

teraway.Restaurantswerefullof

people....It seems likethe pan-

demic is under control,the virus

isgettinglessandlessstrong.We

are not having anyspikes. Our

hospitalsare not overrunwith

covid.”

“Life,”McMahan said, “has re-

turnedtonormal.”

ThePost-ABC poll was con-

ductedFeb.20toFeb.24amonga

random sample of 1,011 U.S.

adults, reached on cellphones

and landlines. Themargin of

error is plus or minus four per-

centagepoints for the overall

resultsand larger amongsub-

groups.

ScottClementcontributedtothis

report.

BYAMYGOLDSTEIN

ANDEMILYGUSKIN

Most Americans saysome re-
strictions on normal activities
should remainin place to tryto
controlthe coronavirus, accord-
ing to aWashington Post-ABC
News poll, which finds thatpub-
lic warinessof the pandemiclin-
gers even as federal health offi-
cials and agrowing roster of
governors have softened mask
advice.
Thenationwide surveyalso
shows that, twoyears into a
health crisis thathas claimed
more than 950,000lives in the
United States, bipartisan majori-
tiesthinkthevirusisonly“some-
whatundercontrol”or“notatall”
controlled.Evenso,mostsaythey
have fully or mostly returnedto
theirnormal,pre-coronavirusac-
tivities.
Perceptions of the dangers
posed by the coronavirus and
attitudestowardrestrictions re-
veal substantialpartisan differ-
ences, accordingto the poll. Tak-
en together,justoverathird of
U.S. adults saythe coronavirus
pandemicis “mostly”or“com-
pletely”under control; but
29percentofDemocratssaythey
hold thatview, comparedwith
41percentofRepublicans.
The34percentoverallwhosay
they regardthe pandemic as
largelycontrolledis amongthe
highestproportion since surveys
began tracking such attitudes
early in the pandemic.Yetnearly
6in10U.S.adultsthinkitismore
important to controlthe virus,
with some restrictions in daily
life,while4in10prefernorestric-
tions.
ThePost-ABC poll was con-
ducted immediately before the
Centersfor DiseaseControland
Prevention announcedanew
framework Fridaybased on a
revised setofmetrics thatdra-
maticallyreducestheareasofthe
countrywhere the public health
agencyrecommendspeoplewear
masks.Thenew formulais de-
signed with the goals of protect-
ing peoplefrom seriousillness
andpreventinghospitalsandoth-
er parts of communities’health-
care systems from being overrun
withcovid-19patients.
At the moment,the newcri-
teria narrows where the CDC
recommends mask-wearingto
about28percentoftheU.S.popu-
lation.
TheCDC made the changes as
manyDemocratic governorsre-
cently lifted statemask man-
dates, while manyRepublican
governors had rescinded them
earlierorneverrequiredmasksin
thefirstplace.
Those government actions
maynot line up withpublic atti-
tudes, even though politicians
have felt pressurefrom constitu-
ents wearyofthe pandemicand
businessownerseager to restore
theirpre-pandemiclevelsofcom-
merce.Thepolldoesnotexplicit-
ly ask about masks as away to
curb the virus’sspread or any
otherspecificpublichealthstrat-
egy.
However,other recent surveys
have found thatmore Americans
still favor rather than oppose
mask requirements, although
supportfortheideahasdippedin
the pastyear.AnEconomist-You-
Govpollreleasedlastweekfound
that52percent of Americans
supported amask mandate for

Most Americans say coronavirus is not under control

NICKOTTOFORTHEWASHINGTONPOST

Apedestrianwalksthrough downtownAlameda, Calif., on Feb. 17,shortlyafter the stateliftedits indoor maskmandate forfullyvaccinated people.OnFridaythe Centersfor

DiseaseControl andPreventionannounced anew frameworkthatdramatically reducesthe areas of the country where masks are recommended.

Source: Feb. 20-24,2022, WashingtonPost-ABC News poll of 1,011 U.S. adults with an error

margin of +/- 4percentagepoints.Error margins larger amongsubgroups.

EMILYGUSKIN/THE WASHINGTON POST

MoreRepublicansthanDemocratshave returnedto

normal, pre-coronaviruslife

Q: How much have you returnedto your normal,pre-coronavirus life? Fully

returnedto normal,mostly returnedto normal,partly returnedto normalor

barely returnedto normal?

Fully Mostly Partly Barely Not at all (volunteered) No opinion

U.S. adults overall

Democrats

Republicans

Independents

21% 35 27 14

11 32 39 15

28 35 22 11

23 35 26 13

Abouthalfof Americanssay the pandemicis

‘somewhat undercontrol’

Q: Do you think the coronavirus outbreak in the United States is completely

undercontrol, mostly under control,somewhatunder controlor not at all

undercontrol?

Completelyunder control

Mostlyunder control

Somewhatunder control

Not at all under control

No opinion

6%

27

49

15

2

Note: Percentagesmaynot add up to 100 due to rounding.

Americansprioritizecontrollingspread of the virus

morethanendingrestrictions

Q: What do you think is moreimportant —tryingtocontrol the spread of the

coronavirus, even if it meanshavingsomerestrictionson normalactivities,

or having no restrictionson normalactivities,even if it hurts effortstocontrol

thespread of the coronavirus?

More important to controlspread Moreimportant to have no restrictions

No opinion

U.S. adults

Democrats

Republicans

Independents

58% 38 5

84 14

32 64 5

59 37 5

indoorspaces,while 38 percent

opposedthe idea. An Associated

Press-NORCpoll releasedMon-

dayfound thathalf of Americans

supportmandatestowearmasks

when peopleare aroundothers

outsidetheir homes,while fewer

than 3in10opposedsuch re-

quirements.

ThePost-ABC News poll finds

thatmostAmericanshavestrong

opinionsabout the wisdomof

pandemic-fighting measures in

general. Thirty-five percent of

U.S. adults saytheyfeel strongly

thatitisimportant to maintain

some restrictions, while another

30 percentsaytheystronglybe-

lieve such restrictions should be

removed.

Thedivergentviewsaretiedto

politicalframesofreference,with

more than 8in10Democrats

preferringto retain measuresto

controlthe virus, while over 6in

10 Republicansprefer no restric-

tionsonnormalactivities.

When it comes to how people

are conducting their lives as the

pandemicenters athird year,

56 percentsaytheyhavemostly

or fully returnedto whattheir

liveswerelikebefore.ButAmeri-

cans’ politicalaffiliations are as-

sociated with significant differ-

encesinhowtheyareconducting

their lives as the pandemiccon-

tinues. Among Republicans,

63 percentsaytheyhavefully or

mostly returned to the waythey

lived before the coronavirus ar-

rived, comparedwith 44 percent

of Democratsand 58 percentof

independents.

In tandemwith their politics,

Americansofdifferentracialand

ethnicgroupsalsodiffermarked-

lyintheextenttowhichtheyhave

resumedtheirpre-pandemicway

of life. Nearly 1in4U.S.adults

who are White or Hispanic say

theyarefullybacktotheirnormal

lives before the coronavirus, but

slightlymorethan1in10whoare

Black saythe same. On the other

hand, just1in 10 White Ameri-

cans saytheir lives have barely

returnedto normal,while more

than 1in5who are Black or

Hispanic describetheir lives that

way.

TimothyPledger said he al-

mostnever goes farther than his

mailboxinthe parkinglot of his

Norfolk apartment complex.

Pledger,61, who is Black and a

Democrat,saidhehasessentially

quarantinedsincehegothomein

October from twoweeks in the

hospital,wherehelearnedhehad

twolargebloodclotsinhislungs.

Foryears, he has been on long-

term disabilityfromajob as an

inspector with the VirginiaDe-

partmentofTransportation.

Even before the clots and the

blood thinners,he did not go out

often,frightenedofthecoronavi-

rus. Still, he has not been vacci-

nated againstit, waryofpossible

sideeffectsandunconvincedthat

itwouldprotecthimenoughfrom

infection.

Pledgerhashisgroceriesdeliv-

APost-ABCpoll findsthat nearly6in

U.S. adultsthinkit is moreimportantto control

the coronavirus,with somerestrictionsin

everydaylife, than to haveno restrictions.