Thread by @ZoeMcLaren

If you're at extremely low risk for a severe case of COVID19 why does getting vaccinated make sense? The simple answer is that you still reap massive personal benefits from getting vaccinated because it helps end the pandemic. Let me explain 1/8

Vaccines provide two types of protection: (1) direct protection to the recipient and (2) indirect protection to others by slowing transmission. The transmission-slowing component is a lot bigger than you think and probably greatly outweighs the direct component. 2/8

Every vaccination is like a speed bump that slows transmission down. More speed bumps mean fewer cases, which makes it easier to bring the pandemic to an end and return to normal activities like going to bars and concerts. 3/8

It will be months until we have an approved vaccine for kids. Our best hope of bringing the pandemic under control in the meantime is high vaxx rates among adults -- especially those under 30 who socialize in big networks and therefore have an outsized impact on transmission. 4/8

Young people have a lot more power to end the pandemic than they might realize. Some modeling studies actually show that, under certain conditions, high vaccination rates of people 16-24 could end the pandemic more quickly than vaccinating the vulnerable. 5/8

It's natural to want to take fewer precautions when your own risk of a severe case of COVID19 is low. But that also means you could end up prolonging the pandemic by contributing to transmission, esp among kids and the vulnerable. Getting vaccinated protects you from that too.6/8

The pandemic has been grueling for all of us. I can understand why some may feel like they don't have the energy to worry about others. But, to be clear, the argument I'm making here is based purely by appealing to your own self-interest. We all want the pandemic to end. 7/8

If you want the pandemic to end, then get vaccinated when it's your turn. It's as simple as that. Even if your risk of severe COVID19 is literally zero.

Slowing transmission is our way out of the pandemic. And every vaccination helps. 8/8

It makes sense to prioritize the vulnerable for vaccination to reduce hospitalizations and deaths when supply is limited. As supply expands and doses are available for everyone it becomes increasingly more important for lower risk people to get vaccinated too. One step at a time.

https://twitter.com/ZoeMcLaren/status/1369455432377450496