COVID-19 cases are rapidly on the rise across the United States. And even fully vaccinated individuals are testing positive.
States and counties with low vaccination rates have been hit the hardest by the rise in cases, largely driven by the highly infectious Delta variant of the coronavirus. But the post-vaccination infections, or breakthrough infections, have also generated heightened concern that this variant has found a way to make existing vaccines ineffective.
That is not the case, says Sehyo Yune, MD, Assistant Vice Chancellor of COVID-19 Wellness at Northeastern. The vaccine is effective against the variant.
How you define whether the vaccine is effective matters, she says. The goal of the vaccine is to prevent severe cases that can lead to hospitalization or death. The CDC-approved COVID-19 vaccines do that—even in the face of the variants. But you might still become mildly infected.
Yune sat down with News@Northeastern to break down the rise in cases and dispel the confusion. This interview was edited for clarity.
