Short THREAD:
In the JCVI minutes from 29 June, the committe had modelling evidence from TWO groups showing significant benefit in vaccinating teens - including preventing deaths.

They dismissed it.
Two models from Warwick and PHE showed "substantial reduction in hospitalisations of 12-17 year olds". Both models estimated vax would prevent 3 deaths per million kids vaxxed. (2/million in prev healthy children).

Warwick also showed LARGE REDUCTION in INFECTIONS.
The JCVI remained unmoved. They thought opportunity costs (affecting school vax progs) & potential harms from vax (although they earlier acknowledged vax myocarditis was q mild) outweighed benefit (but no numbers to support).

They also touted natural infection as better *again*
They then dismissed PIMS-TS (severe rare syndrome in kids than puts many in ICU) and Long Covid as rare. But rare with high number of infections can be significant. AND vax causes neither - so benefits here must outweigh risk - esp as vax WILL REDUCE OVERALL INFECTIONS IN KIDS.
Depsite frequently saying education not their remit, they somewhat strangely seem to say that kids getting covid is less disruptive to education (or should be less disruptive?) than vaccination?!
In 1st July minutes (pt 7), JCVI say they didn't trust the modelling because it was based on wave 2 when adults weren't vaxxed. They believed that high vax rates in adults would stop cases in children I think. We can see how that turned out.
Finally, note that the PHE model at the top assumed a 4% "attack rate" (ie 4% of kids would get infected over the time period). Since 1 Sept alone, 11% of 10-14 yrs have had a *confirmed case*. The benefits shown by the modelling would in fact have been *much higher*.
There is much more to say about the minutes & the contradictory statements that appear throughout (esp on remit). But these bits show they had modelling showing significant benefit and just dismissed it.

They worried so much about vax myocarditis & so little about covid/END
PS 29 June minutes here:
app.box.com/s/iddfb4ppwkmt…

1 July minutes here:
app.box.com/s/iddfb4ppwkmt…

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More from @chrischirp

29 Oct
QUICK(ISH) THREAD ON UK COVID UPDATE:

TLDR: cases dropping (partly but not wholly a half term effect), but hospital admissions & deaths rising (in England). Vax still not fast enough.

1/13
Vaccination: NI v behind on boosters *and* highest rate of unvaxxed.

England v behind still on 12-15 yrs compared to Scotland & Wales. Disappointing. 2/13
In terms of speed, boosters are getting quicker but first jabs (teens) are not (in England).

Projecting forward *current* rates, the teen and priority group booster programme won't be done till Feb.

We need to increase availability *and* demand. 3/13
Read 13 tweets
28 Oct
SHORT THREAD: about Covid testing, system strain and potential fall out from Immensa scandal on getting PCR tests...

Am highlighting stuff from @ProfColinDavis , @fascinatorfun , @cfinnecy, @samueljlovett & @Gabriel_Pogrund

TLDR: it's not just Immensa, system is straining 1/11
When you do a PCR test, the most common result is either a positive or negative. But some tests return a "void" result, which can mean a bad sample or bad testing process.
Or an "unknown" result where the test just gets lost in the system 2/11

@fascinatorfun has pointed out that voids are more common if testing capacity is under strain - rushed tests, cutting corners on equipment maintenance or procedures etc can lead to more voids.

Tests also more likely to be lost in a straining system 3/11
Read 12 tweets
26 Oct
THREAD on IMPACT OF IMMENSA SCANDAL:

Here are case rates in 10-14 yrs for the 13 most impacted English local authorities compared to all other local authorities.

The dodgy artificially low case rates are obvious as is massive increase in spread compared to rest of England 1/6
Here are primary school age children who *weren't* doing regular LFD tests and relied much more on PCR tests for symptoms.

The two dips looks as if different authorities in that list might have been impacted at different times. 2/6
The recent increase is *not* people rushing out to get tested. The last data point is 19 Oct - the scandal only broke on 15 Oct. The increases all started before then.

It wasn't just children either - here are their parents' age group 3/6
Read 6 tweets
24 Oct
Not only does Wales have a very high case rate at the moment it also has an *extremely high* positivity rate - almost a quarter of people tested are testing positive...
Also -Welsh hospital admissions with Covid are pretty much the same as their *first wave* peak and half their Jan 2021 peak.

In contrast, England is at about a quarter of Jan peak and a third of first wave peak.
You can see a vaccine effect though - severity of illness seems quite a bit less this time around and with shorter stays (so total number in hospital lower at any one time)
Read 6 tweets
23 Oct
THREAD: overview of where we are with Covid.

TLDR: Things aren't looking great, SW hit hard by the Immensa lab scandal, admissions climbing quite fast.

Half term should help a lot in the short term. Esp if we accelerate vax. Clear case for Vax Plus. 1/20
On vaccination, home nations between 65 and 71% fulle vaxxed. Good but behind many other high income countries now.

England v slow on 12-15 rollout - 18% vs 36% in Wales & 50% in Scotland.

16-18 yr old data shows vax works 2/20
On boosters - firstly looks like Pfizer booster works phenomenally well - much higher levels of antibodies after 3rd dose and 96% reduction in risk of catching covid after 3rd dose compared to just 1 dose.

So we def want to them in people - & case stronger for under 50s? 3/20
Read 20 tweets
19 Oct
Two things stand out to me from this chart:

1. The SW is accelerating much faster than anywhere else
2. London rates are almost half those everywhere else.

1. could be driven by the testing scandal but I have no idea what is driving the lower rates in London! and... 1/2
... it's not just testing behaviours!
Positivity rates in SW are also climbing steeply (*before the scandal came out late last week).

Meanwhile positivity rates in London are *also* lower than everywhere else, so it's not just lack of testing 2/2
PS the lower rates in London are seen across the whole age range.
Read 4 tweets

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