Thread by @MackayIM

Yes, & if I *chose* to do these sports, I'd be *choosing* to take the risk.
I *chose* not to partake in any of those.
🎶One of these things is not like the other🎵
Until recently, those of my age couldn't make a *choice* even though there were options.
This a poor comparison

And admission: I don't have my own horse in this game because I was vaccinated with Pfizer in March as a frontline worker. I use my age (50 - still!!) as a example

This is a better comparison because I can't control getting homicided or car accidented.
However, I can *choose* not to stand in the rain during a lightning storm, and I'm a pretty good (& infrequent) swimmer.
But this is just about deaths? Why control the narrative that way?

The latest ATAGI data - which includes thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome (TTS) figures up until May 19th (2.2million AZ doses) is a better gauge of reported & analysed TTS cases - not just death.
Risk of TTS in Aus is 1.8 per 100,000 ≥50 years
health.gov.au/news/atagi-upd…

Don't forget that TTS also involves ICU admission.
tga.gov.au/periodic/covid…

I don't know how many people get struck by lightning and survive so can't compare them.
But what if we compared TTS from Pfizer/Moderna/Novavax vaccines? They exist. Perhaps that would be a more helpful comparison? Comparing to TTS after COVID-19 is currently not relevant in Aus.

But on the bright side, "Data from the UK indicates that TTS is much less common after second doses, with an overall incidence of 1.5 cases per million doses" or 0.15 people per 100,000 doses.
If still unsure, get your second AZ vaccination on schedule.

To be VERY clear-TTS is a very rare outcome (as is myocarditis/pericarditis from any vax vs from COVID-19).
If we had COVID-19 in the Aus community we'd be looking at a ~0.68% infection *fatality* rate (people fixate on death🤷‍♂️)-that's 680 deaths per 100,000 notifications. Bad!

...which of course varies with age (see Table below).

So yes, of course, get vaccinated Australia!!
But also, yes, of course, you are right to expect the safest product possible. NZ use it. We'll soon have a lot of it.

But focussing only on deaths feels like a deliberate effort to shame people into action just because ...they want the best product for them and their loved ones? A product that exists but is denied them only because of supply issues? That's just uncool.

Ref for that rate and associated table:
📙sciencedirect.com/science/articl…

To my non-AUS/NZ Tweeps - this convo may anger you & seem surreal - we've each had & continue to have very different responses to the pandemic and vaccination rollouts. Please remember the context that this is a geographically constrained thought bubble