Universal coronavirus vaccine may save lives, money in future pandemic (it must be an election year)

MSN ^ | January 12, 2024 | Dennis Thompson

[DoodleBob]

A universal coronavirus vaccine could have saved millions of lives and billions of dollars if one had been available prior to the pandemic, a new study argues.

Further, a universal vaccine -- one that targets parts of the virus common to all coronaviruses -- could still be a game-changer in the future, researchers say.

But that's only possible if one is developed before another variant mutates and runs rampant through the human population.

"COVID-19 was the third major and serious coronavirus epidemic or pandemic following SARS in 2002 and MERS in 2012, thus, we should anticipate a fourth coronavirus outbreak within the next decade or so," said researcher Dr. Peter Hotez, dean of Baylor College's National School of Tropical Medicine and co-director of the Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development.

"A universal vaccine is cost-effective and cost-saving, and a priority for advancement," Hotez added.

To figure out the potential value of having had a universal vaccine at the start of the pandemic, Hotez and his colleagues developed a computer model that simulated the entire U.S. population through the introduction and spread of COVID in 2020.

Specifically, the simulation weighed what might have happened if a universal coronavirus vaccine had been available at the start.

…scientists developed a strain-specific COVID vaccine in record time, but that still left 10 months of unchecked infection, illness and death.

Using the simulation, researchers determined that universal vaccine would have saved money even if it’d only been 10% effective against COVID and a minority of the populace had received the jab.

For example, a vaccine with 10% efficacy administered to a quarter of the U.S. population within two months of the start of the pandemic would have averted 14.6 million infections and saved more than $27 billion in direct medical costs, researchers estimate.

[DoodleBob]

This is Dr. Hotez.

“The phony thread about vaccines causing autism is still out there and it hasn’t gone away. But now piling on to that, it's taken on a political mantle. The anti-vaccine movement got adopted about 7–8 years ago, even before the pandemic, by far right extremist elements of the Republican Party.” He adds that “The anti-vaccine group started getting political action committee money and there was an expanded use of propaganda and rhetoric invoking terms like health freedom, medical freedom, and then you started see the steep rise in the number of kids not getting vaccines…because doing so became part of a new political identity.” The movement also grew a few months after mRNA vaccines became available in the COVID-19 pandemic, he notes. It became “an organised, deliberate, well financed, and predatory disinformation campaign to convince people in my State of Texas and other adjoining states…not to take a COVID-19 vaccine”, he says

[Jonty30]

He looks sane. Dr Frankenstein sane.

[rktman]

Uh, otay buckwheat! Fidiot!

[Nervous Tick]

That pic is wild. And not in a good way.

** Note the bow tie, carefully positioned OUTSIDE the lab coat. Takeaway: Hotez is an image-oriented marketeer, not a scientist.

** Note how crisp and readable the douchebag’s credentials are on the lab coat. Again, marketing uber alles.

** A freaking gold plated microscope? Seriously?

** I won’t even mention the wild-eyed crazy zealot look. Oh, sorry, I just did.

[Billthedrill]

OMG yes, The Man With The Golden Microscope. For golden viruses. I’ve seen better authenticity on The Shopping Channel.

[G Larry]

There is no such "vaccine" that is either effective or necessary.

Have you noticed that Pfizer has come out with a drug to treat the cardiac conditions it's last "vaccine" caused?

[Nervous Tick]

>> I’ve seen better authenticity on The Shopping Channel.

ROFL!

[cuz1961]

Universal coronavirus vaccine MAY save lives, money in future pandemic .

‘may’, the ultimate weasel word.

spit.we

[Paladin2]

“may”?

If he were truly “Science”, like Fauxcy”, he would not use “may”.

Good luck on that safe and effective vaccine for the common cold though.

[Rocco DiPippo]

Here's a nice pic of him working in his lab.

[griswold3]

They never stop. Whatever happened to do no harm?

[mrmeyer]

He looks like he’s on a registry.

[yldstrk]

Unless you are wearing a tuxedo or you are a cute canine, drop the bow tie.

[z3n]

“a universal vaccine”

~~~

What?
You mean like monoclonal antibodies?
Oh!

[bk1000]

I will not take the jab. Full stop.

[BeauBo]

The Military has been developing a general coronavirus vaccine at Walter Reed Medical Center, since before COVID. It is still cooking off in the normal testing process.

[radmanptn]

It doesn’t look good when a doctor with a creepy profile photo that has leftist books on his book shelf complains about right wing extremists. 2 of the titles I can make out are: Lone Star Nation by Richard Parker and As Texas Goes by Gail Collins. If there any mental health care professionals at that hospital they should explain projection to him.

[Jan_Sobieski]

DugwayDuke and exDemMom will be first in line! 🧠

[Rocco DiPippo]

How about Entropy, the bionic cruise guy who’s 120 years old and bench presses 400lbs?