Thread by @DrEricDing

Getting nervous—The #DeltaVariant is not only causing 58.7% surge in cases, but also 72% increase in #COVID19 deaths and 10% increase in 🏥 hospitalizations—just in 1 week. UK 🇬🇧 has been 96-100% #DeltaVariant now for 2 weeks, cases⬆️ for a month. Masks?🧵coronavirus.data.gov.uk

2) Hospital admissions has also been up in Scotland for a month now too. #DeltaVariant dominant in Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 too

3) UK has also now exceeded Israel for % receiving at least 1 shot. (Canada leads the world in 1 shot but not 2 shots). But not nearly enough to stop #DeltaVariant

4) UK is now 47% 2-dose vaccinated. Israel near 60% 2-dose (mostly Pfizer too). Still not nearly enough to stop all transmission. We must vaccinate more against #DeltaVariant

5) Let me be clear—vaccines do work if you take it, and you take 2 doses especially. Here are vaccine efficacy against symptomatic #DeltaVariant Covid for Pfizer (83% from Scotland, 88% from England), but 60-61% for AstraZeneca. These are good but not leak proof to infect others.

6) Also, hate to be Debbie downer on 1-dose of vaccine… but Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine’s 1 dose efficacy against #DeltaVariant infection is just… 18%, according to major Scotland study. yes you heard that right… peer reviewed Lancet paper. Get 2 doses folks please!!!

7) Hence this is why even if vaccinated, we still need to mask. And why CDC needs to recant it’s no mask rule given the rise of the #DeltaVariant

8) We must follow the precautionary principle with #DeltaVariant - it is simply too contagious. Fleeting exposures of mere seconds is faster than any previously known variant of #COVID19. Australia 🇦🇺 contact tracing taught is a sobering lesson ⬇️

9) update— UK new cases (virtually all #DeltaVariant) now up 70% from previous week. This is a further acceleration from 58% earlier.