This is the first analysis giving an estimated number
of vaccine-prevented infections, providing further
evidence of the staggering impact of the vaccination
programme so far.
PHE Head of
Immunisation Dr Mary Ramsay said:
These findings remind us once again why getting both
doses of your vaccine is the most important thing you
can do to stop the spread of this terrible disease.
As well as preventing the deaths of tens of thousands
from COVID-19, for the first time we can now
appreciate the huge impact that the vaccines have had
on stopping people getting infected, and therefore
passing the virus on to others.
The results were produced using the PHE and Cambridge
real-time pandemic
surveillance model, looking at the direct and
indirect impact of the COVID-19 vaccination programme
on infections and mortality.
The total was calculated by comparing the estimated
impact of vaccination on infection and mortality
against a worst-case scenario where no vaccines were in
place to reduce infections and mortality.
Dr Paul Birrell, Senior Research Associate at the
MRC
Biostatistics Unit, University of Cambridge and Senior
Principal Modeller at PHE, said:
The number of infections and deaths saved by the
vaccination programme is not only astoundingly high,
but continues to grow exponentially as the
vaccination programme continues.
In practice, this analysis highlights that the
vaccination programme has given us a path back
towards a normal life that wouldn’t otherwise have
been possible. This is why it’s so important that we
all get 2 doses of the vaccine as soon as we can.
