Numerous researchers around the world are seeking to develop a vaccine to protect against COVID-19. An April 28, 2020 Nature.com article[1] stated “more than 90 vaccines are being developed against SARS-CoV-2” (COVID-19). Clinical trials are already underway on a few of them. If/when one is publicly available, perhaps as soon as late this year, should getting vaccinated be mandatory?
Various Vaccines
Various vaccines protect us effectively against several communicable diseases, including chicken pox, diphtheria, hepatitis A, measles, mumps, pertussis (whooping cough), rubella, and tetanus. That’s wonderful.
But coronaviruses like the common cold, influenza (flu), and COVID-19 are harder to vaccinate against. For example, we still don’t have an effective vaccine against the common cold. New vaccines are developed each year for particular flu strains, but they only protect against certain varieties of the flu and aren’t 100% effective against those.
A Few Questions About Potential COVID-19 Vaccines
Massive efforts are underway to develop a COVID-19 vaccine. But if one is developed, how effective will it be? How safe will it be? How long will it take to accurately determine its safety and effectiveness? Will the virus mutate rendering the vaccine ineffective against new mutations? These questions remain unanswered.
My Personal Views on Coronavirus Vaccinations
Personally, I don’t want to be a guinea pig on the front lines of those getting a COVID-19 vaccine. Initially, I think it would be best to limit the vaccine to high-risk groups such as the elderly and those with underlying conditions.
A large percentage of persons who catch COVID-19 are either asymptomatic or have mild symptoms. We don’t want the treatment to be worse than the disease.
I’ve never had a flu shot either except for one during my first year of college when President Gerald Ford urged persons in the United States to get vaccinated against the swine flu. More persons apparently experienced problems from the vaccine than from the flu.
According to a 2013 Discover Magazine piece[2] about that 1976 swine flu outbreak “those who were infected with the flu only suffered from a mild illness while the vaccine . . . resulted in over four-hundred and fifty people developing the paralyzing Guillain-Barre syndrome.”
A Particular Concern About a Potential COVID-19 Vaccine
A particular concern with a potential COVID-19 vaccine is the speed with which its development is being rushed. Rushing it into production in a matter of months instead of years prevents knowing its long term side effects before it is administered. It also potentially can lead to mistakes in the production process if massive production is rushed.
To err on the side of caution, I would prefer that the development of the vaccine not occur too hastily. Allowing at least months of clinical trials, followed by recommending the vaccination only to high-risk groups, would protect the masses of persons from potential side effects of the vaccine that do not become apparently in the initial clinical trials.
It often takes years to learn about drug side effects. Despite their many years on the market, we are still learning about the side effects and the potential side effects of such over-the-counter pain reducer drugs as aspirin, Tylenol, Advil, and Aleve.
Grocery Bag Example and Changing Views Over Time
I remember when I was a child that groceries and most other store purchases came in brown paper bags. Then, to help save trees that were cut down to make paper for bags, persons were urged to use plastic bags. Then, to avoid the environmental damage caused by disposal of huge quantities of plastic bags, some advocated switching to reusable bags. Now, during the COVID-19 pandemic, some stores prohibit using reusable bags to help reduce the potential spread of disease. Views change over time.
Views change on other things too. Examples include the changing views on the effectiveness of wearing masks against COVID-19, changing views about how easily the disease spreads via contact with contaminated surfaces, and changing views on how far droplets in the air can spread. Lack of consistent information makes it hard to establish firm rules.
Many rules can be changed if necessary. But once a vaccine has been administered, it may be too late to protect against any previously unknown side effects from it.
My Recommendation
If/when a COVID-19 vaccine is developed, I recommend that its use be strongly recommended for especially vulnerable populations such as the elderly and those with preexisting conditions that make them more likely to suffer major consequences from having COVID-19. But I wouldn’t make it mandatory for anyone. Furthermore, I might even discourage healthy young persons under age 65 (or maybe 60 or 50?) from getting it initially.
ENDNOTES:
1 Ewen Callaway; “The race for coronavirus vaccines: a graphical guide”; Nature; April 28, 2020; webpage accessed May 24, 2020; https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-01221-y
2 Rebecca Kreston; “The Public Health Legacy of the 1976 Swine Flu Outbreak”; Discover Magazine; September 30, 2013; webpage accessed May 24, 2020; https://www.discovermagazine.com/health/the-public-health-legacy-of-the-1976-swine-flu-outbreak
NOTE:
This article being submitted to Google Blogger on May 24, 2020 is virtually identical to one the author submitted earlier the same day to Craft News Report, a website operated by his friend Paul Craft.
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