Hundreds of Vaccinated People Hospitalized with Delta Variant in England

Hundreds of fully vaccinated people in England have been hospitalized with the highly contagious variant of the Delta coronavirus, scientists said on Friday.

In its latest COVID-19 update, Public Health England (PHE) also warned that there were early signs that people who have been inoculated may be able to transmit the Delta strain as easily as those who have not received any vaccine.

From July 19 to August 2, 55.1% of the 1,467 people hospitalized with the Delta variant were not vaccinated, PHE said, while 34.9% – or 512 people – had received two doses.

July 19, labeled Freedom Day, was the date on which England significantly eased lockdown restrictions.

All vaccines used in the UK – those produced by AstraZeneca, Moderna, and Pfizer-BioNTech – require recipients to receive two doses to be fully vaccinated.

About 75 percent of the UK’s adult population has received two injections to date.

“As the population gets vaccinated, we will see a higher relative percentage of people vaccinated in the hospital,” PHE said.