Yes, the Delta Variant is contagious, and currently available vaccines were not thoroughly tested against it ( that Variant did not exist in January ), but Johnson and Johnson’s claim that their vaccine is effective against the Delta variant...
The next obvious question is this.... how LETHAL is it compared to the original Covid-19? Are the new cases mostly severe or asymptomatic and mild? How many deaths in Israel from this Delta variant so far?
It’s important to get the answers to these questions because as the USA opens up, the Delta variant will be the DOMINANT one soon.
I have not been jabbed. I am currently concerned that the shot is more dangerous than the illness, however I am watching it closely.
To wit, does anyone know the death rate? Infection rate is an interesting data point but the death rate is what matters to me.
Anyone?
J&J has two pre-print studies going out for publication on its efficacy based on 8 months of studies. They claim it is roughly 85% effective overall, and confers strong antibody production against the South African and the new Delta variants.
The article in the OP makes a suggestion that the Pfizer vaccine, which was I believe to have been most widely used in Israel, has dropped to the 64% range in terms of overall efficacy. Suggests that whatever benefit it may deliver at first (original claim 95% reduction in severe illness or death) seems to wane rather rapidly considering it’s only been a few months since its released - and its wide adoption by Israelis.