Originally Posted by
hailstorm
It's really quite impressive how Japan has cut transmission of the Delta variant over the past month. Especially Tokyo, where diagnosed cases are down almost 90%! I did not think that possible, so credit where credit is due.
Yes, but if they had gotten the vaccines out in a more timely manner, there's a good chance they could have completely avoided the Delta flare up in the first place. In my view, it can only be viewed as a colossal screw up.
Waning vaccine efficacy might be problem, but don't forget most of the elderly got their last shot in the last two or three months. To me, the big issue is serving alcohol, there's room for debate on this, but IMHO the only policy lever (other than vaccines) that has a significant impact on transmission is restrictions on serving alcohol.