In CT, Pace Of Vaccinations Slows As Delta Variant Spreads

CONNECTICUT — Vaccinations among state residents are increasing, but is the pace fast enough to outrace the spread of the coronavirus delta variant?

The delta variant is now the dominant variant in the state and the U.S. It reached the top of its class by being twice as contagious as the alpha variant, which shut down the U.K. at the start of the year, which itself was nearly twice as contagious as the original virus.

The COVID-19 vaccines available in Connecticut remain highly effective at preventing severe disease and death, including against the delta variant, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Although some fully vaccinated people can still be become infected and get sick in a so-called "breakthrough" infection, delta's clear target is the unvaccinated.

In late June, the CDC's 7-day moving average of reported delta variant cases was around 12,000. On July 27, the 7-day moving average of cases reached over 60,000.

In two different studies from Canada and Scotland, patients infected with the delta variant were more likely to be hospitalized than patients infected with alpha or the original virus strains.

As of Thursday, 97 percent of those over the age of 65, 87 percent of those between 55-64, 77 percent of those between 45-54, 75 percent of those between 35-44, 66 percent of those between 25-34, 63 percent of those between 18-24, 72 percent of those between 16-17, and 58 percent of those between 12-15 have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.

Over the past week, the percentage of children aged 12-15 who are fully vaccinated in the state has grown by less than 2 percent, and it's possible that less than half of that age tier will be fully vaccinated by the start of the school year.

Those vaccination rates vary widely across the state, with the western portion of Connecticut being much more thoroughly inoculated than the eastern population.

Last week, Gov. Ned Lamont issued an executive order giving municipal leaders the option of mandating that all residents wear masks in indoor public places within their local jurisdiction. City chiefs in Norwalk, Stamford, Danbury, Bridgeport, Hartford, and New Haven have quickly moved to take advantage of the order to require residents and visitors in those municipalities to mask up in public areas indoors, regardless of their vaccination status.

The delta variant has also pushed back the finish line for herd immunity, according to a report in the New York Times. As a result of the fast-spreading variant, some experts have estimated that 90 percent or more of the total population would need to be fully vaccinated for the country to reach a herd immunity.