Depending on the target, vaccines can allow the immune system to eliminate it before it can start multiplying significantly. For things like measles etc, this effect is strong enough to provide effective immunity. Whether vaccines can stop infections depends a lot on how you define infection. They won’t magically stop the virus being able to enter your body. They can stop them from establishing themselves and stop you becoming infectious to others.
Unfortunately, the coronavirus family viruses are particularly slippery. Even our primary immunity from infection is often short lived. COVID is ridiculously good at both hiding from the immune system, and spreading to new hosts. The vaccine provides significant protection, but isn’t effective enough to provide complete immunity.
Also basically no country in the world is taking elimination of the virus seriously.
In fact - Australia’s stance is “get your arse back on the office/school/factory you ugly mug”, and that’s about it.
That’s because it is unreasonable to take elimination of the virus seriously at this point. It’s like saying no one is taking seriously the elimination of cold and flu. For better or worse, it’s here to stay. Elimination is no longer an option.
Even then, the one thing we should have got right was that you’re required to take sick leave when you’re positive.
Yet our government says my colleague is allowed to bring COVID into the office twice in a month, further risking the health of my high risk parents and grandparents. As if that’s even remotely acceptable.
