Nearly 4,000 Fully Vaccinated People in Massachusetts Test Positive for "Breakthrough" Coronavirus Infection

Almost 4,000 fully vaccinated people in the state of Massachusetts have tested positive for the COVID-19 virus. Recent data from the state Department of Public Health shows that approximately one in 1,000 fully vaccinated people have tested positive. 

As of June 12, there were 3,791 coronavirus cases among the more than 3.7 million fully vaccinated individuals in the state, reports the Department of Public Health. 

"We’re learning that many of the breakthrough infections are asymptomatic or they’re very mild and brief in duration," said Boston University infectious diseases specialist Davidson Hamer, according to the Boston Herald. "The viral load is not very high." People who are immunocompromised are said to be at a greater risk for breakthrough cases.

"Breakthroughs are expected, and we need to better understand who’s at risk and whether people who have a breakthrough can transmit the virus to others," he continued. "In some cases, they’ll be shedding such low levels of the virus and won’t be transmitting to others."

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), large-scale clinical studies have concluded that the vaccinations do offer some kind of protection to people who have taken their shot. However, no vaccine can offer 100% protection from the disease, and there will be "a small percentage of fully vaccinated people who still get sick, are hospitalized, or die from COVID-19," the agency said. 

According to the CDC,  a total of 10,262 breakthrough infections were reported throughout the country as of April 30, 2021, and by then, around 101 million people had been vaccinated, states NBC Boston.

It is likely that several other cases have gone untested and unreported, suggest federal officers. It is to also be taken into consideration that most people who are fully vaccinated show little to no symptoms when infected. Given the situation, health experts suggest that the best thing to do is to immediately get a test done if one shows even the mildest of symptoms. 

"Testing to identify current infection remains critical to control of COVID-19," a spokeswoman for the Department of Public Health said in a statement. "People with current infection can spread the virus to others and isolation of cases and identification of close contacts (individuals who may have been exposed) is a foundation of public health response."

References:

https://www.mass.gov/orgs/department-of-public-health
https://www.bostonherald.com/2021/06/16/nearly-4000-fully-vaccinated-people-in-massachusetts-have-tested-positive-for-coronavirus/
https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/covid-19/health-departments/breakthrough-cases.html#:~:text=However%2C%20no%20vaccines%20are%20100,as%20of%20June%2014%2C%202021.
https://www.nbcboston.com/news/local/nearly-4000-breakthrough-covid-infections-have-now-been-reported-in-mass/2408052/

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