RISK OF REINFECTION BY OMICRON HAS INCREASED, DISCOVERY STUDY FINDS

This is from a new study conducted by Discovery Health looking at over 211,000 PCR tests results from September, including the last three weeks since the detection of the new variant.

Mia Lindeque | Eyewitness News

JOHANNESBURG - Early data on the latest COVID-19 variant has shown that the risk of getting reinfected by the Omicron variant has increased.

This is from a new study conducted by Discovery Health looking at over 211,000 PCR tests results from September, including the last three weeks since the detection of the new variant.

Chief health analytics actuary at Discovery Health, Shirley Collie, said that they have found that the Pfizer vaccines' effectiveness against the infection decreased over time.

“It reduces, one to two months post the second dose, to 37%. It reduces even further to 25% when one is looking at the durations three to four months post the second dose.”

President and CEO of the South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC), Professor Glenda Gray, said that the vaccines were designed to protect people against ending up in hospital and death.

“We expect to see that the 25% that you are talking about are probably the elderly as well. It is compounded by the people who had their vaccines pretty much a long time ago,” Professor Gray said.