Four in ten English people over 80 have broken containment rules after receiving the first dose of vaccine, according to a report released Thursday (4) by the British Statistical Service (ONS).
The investigation investigated elderly people who had taken the vaccine less than three weeks ago, when protection against Covid-19 is not yet well established. Of these, 41% said they had met someone outside of their family bubble (or caregivers), in closed environments.
The data was released the same day statistics showed the decline in contagion in the UK was slowing, leading scientists to worry.
Nearly half (49%) of those over 80 say the coronavirus carries a significant personal risk without vaccination, a rate that drops to just 5% among those who have already received two doses of the vaccine.
In the survey, carried out between February 15 and 20, 99.8% of people over 80 said they had already received at least one dose of an immunizer. According to the NHS (public health system) 2,675,253 older people in this age group took their first dose in England, and until February 21 and 342,716 they also received the booster.
Established on January 5, the English lockdown prohibits socializing with family or friends unless they are part of your household or bubble of support. Although restricted contact and advanced vaccination have reduced the number of hospitalizations and deaths in the country, scientists said the infection data was still of concern.
Large-scale pandemic statistics from the React-1 study released Thursday by the UK government show infection levels are still high in England and on the rise in some places, although the general trend is downward.
The study is seen as a more accurate picture of reality, as it performs randomized and representative testing of the English population. Since people are tested in batches, and not because they have symptoms or any other external reason, the possibility of distortions in the results is reduced.
“It is worrying that, despite the vaccination program, the number of infections has started to rise again in points in most parts of England,” said Simon Clarke, professor at the University of Reading.
For Clarke, as the reduction in contagion slows, “it remains essential that those vaccinated continue to follow government guidelines to protect themselves and their loved ones.”
According to him, the government should think about the risk of messages on the success of the vaccination campaign, which can convey a false sense of security from Covid-19.
According to the professor of applied statistics Kevin McConway of the Open University, “It is a little disheartening to see evidence of an increase, although in general the trend continues to decline.”