I see the article is well written. The problem is developed countries are doing nothing significant. They think if they vaccinate their population they are good. And they are supplying only some excess vaccines to developing countries which is like drop in bucket. And they are stuck on patents, greediness and all of these thing. I don't think the country where I live will have vaccines till 2023 and people here are already tired of multiple lockdowns and masks...
The article states that Israel is still seeing 90%+ protection against hospitalizations and death for those who are vaccinated, while the Delta variant spreads there.
Vaccination has been the answer all along. You may still get symptomatic COVID but the likelihood of it putting you in the hospital, or worse, is greatly diminished.
The biggest issues in developed countries who have been able to vaccinate everyone willing to get vaccinated are:
1) People choosing not to get vaccinated
2) Children, who either can't get vaccinated, or parents are unsure if it's a good idea
#1 seems simple -- lockdown post-vaccine was pretty much a non-starter most places and there isn't much evidence with this Delta variant that this was a wrong decision. Those at-risk who can't get vaccinated need to isolate. Those who can get vaccinated and choose not to are accepting the risk. With the vaccine still protecting at 90%+, I don't even see the anti-vax folks causing much external effect outside of their population.
#2 is trickier. Vaccinating children feels much riskier to me and I've not decided if my own kids should get the shots or not. Given that COVID has shown to be minimally impactful for children compared to adults as well as compared to other viruses children commonly get, it seems mostly unnecessary. However, if Delta proves to be more dangerous for kids, those who feel vaccines are fine for adults but are doubtful for kids, will really need to rethink things.
