Ask HN: How many jabs needed for Omicron? • Hacker News Board

Re: Ask HN: How many jabs needed for Omicron?

#11

Post by crate_barre » Tue, Dec 14, 2021, 4:13 PM UTC

A large percentage of Moderna’s revenue is just from the Vaccine (with some googling you can confirm it’s an overwhelming amount). Moderna was more or less a startup.

When political theater writes blank checks to pharma companies, they go on to rake in billions on a quarterly basis just from the vaccine.

So, if we follow the money, third booster will be mandatory, followed with ‘highly-recommended’ fourth vaccine for the vulnerable class.

It’s a mix of money, politics, and actual health concerns that drive all of this. Do not for a second think that billion dollar quarters are being scoffed at, there are forces at work that will absolutely facilitate collecting this check. The icing on the cake is that it’s happening on a global scale.

Re: Ask HN: How many jabs needed for Omicron?

#12

Post by treacle » Tue, Dec 14, 2021, 4:40 PM UTC

iExploder wrote: post #4

I'm in no way an expert. however, its pretty much common knowledge that viruses mutate, given that it makes sense that vaccines need to be updated. i see two scenarios: 1. forever taking vaccines at periodic intervals, probably enforced by law, judge dredd style 2. this particular virus will become less severe once everyone had it + was vaccinated and overly aggressive mutations died out, vaccines will be recommended…

Don't forget the 'weak' will have likely been wiped out.

Re: Ask HN: How many jabs needed for Omicron?

#13

Post by octokatt » Tue, Dec 14, 2021, 4:49 PM UTC

iExploder wrote: post #4

I'm in no way an expert. however, its pretty much common knowledge that viruses mutate, given that it makes sense that vaccines need to be updated. i see two scenarios: 1. forever taking vaccines at periodic intervals, probably enforced by law, judge dredd style 2. this particular virus will become less severe once everyone had it + was vaccinated and overly aggressive mutations died out, vaccines will be recommended…

The lack of punctuation, the phrasing of this response, and the Overton Window nudging makes me think this comment is not in good faith.

Re: Ask HN: How many jabs needed for Omicron?

#14

Post by wbsss4412 » Tue, Dec 14, 2021, 4:52 PM UTC

My understanding is that it’s less about the number of vaccines being effective against omicron than it is about the timeliness of how long it has been since you’ve gotten it.

Given the time since you’ve received your last dose, the amount of circulating antibodies in your system has dropped off. Your immune system still has the systems in place to recognize Covid and produce antibodies against it, but given the different structure of omicron the concern is that your system will be less effective in doing so. Getting a third jab, however, will cause your system to immediately start reproducing antibodies again, which seem to still be effective against the variant.

I am however, not a doctor nor a specialist in this field so anything I’ve written should be independently checked.

Re: Ask HN: How many jabs needed for Omicron?

#15

Post by rsynnott » Tue, Dec 14, 2021, 5:59 PM UTC

Protection against infection by omicron with two vaccines is minimal (for that matter, it wasn’t great for delta); protection against severe illness is still believed to be substantial. The booster offers substantial protection from infection.

Israel is not, as far as anyone knows, preparing for a fourth vaccine, though it has been speculated about (and realistically most countries have contingency plans in that direction).

For now, it’s not really known how long protection against infection by a booster holds up. It might be an every six month job, it might require a fourth and no more, three might be sufficient. No-one knows.

Re: Ask HN: How many jabs needed for Omicron?

#16

Post by lasereyes136 » Tue, Dec 14, 2021, 8:15 PM UTC

I get a flu vaccine shot every year so I expect a Covid shot at least that often. It is my understanding that the flu vaccine changes every year based on the projections of what flu will be the most common in the upcoming flu season. There are reasons to think Covid will be the same.

Re: Ask HN: How many jabs needed for Omicron?

#17

Post by GuB-42 » Wed, Dec 15, 2021, 2:46 PM UTC

thomascgalvin wrote: post #7

We simply don't know. Omicron hasn't been around long enough to make declarative statements. That being said, I think there is still reason for hope: 1. Omicron seems more infectious, but less lethal. Science still needs to collect more data, but the evidence seems to be leaning in this direction. [1] 2. Two shots of an mRNA vaccine still seem to show some protection against hospitalization and death. [2] 3. Three sh…

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- 6 shots of an mRNA vaccine will protect against all viruses, including HIV and Ebola, but in an unlikely twist of events, SARS-CoV-2 has now mutated to become a bacteria

- 7 shots of an mRNA vaccine will protect will also protect against bacteria, but SARS-CoV-2 now managed to move into computer networks thanks to the 5G capabilities of the vaccines

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- With 10 shots of an mRNA vaccine, you are now ready to conquer the galaxy in an ambitious program run by SARS-CoV-2, who just won the elections