Israel’s COVID Brain Trust Sees Tunnel, if Not Light at Its End

Israel’s COVID brain trust, its committee of advisers on fighting the pandemic, is not yet seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, but the tunnel itself might be in sight. Before the delta variant hit in June, Israelis were self-satisfied at being world leaders in rolling out vaccinations at super speed and returning to a COVID-version of normal before other nations. But when the delta variant hit, it hit hard, and placed new challenges before the leadership. On the issue of a third vaccination, there was no hesitation. Even though there was at the time no hard data to back up the decision, the age-60+ segment of the population began receiving “the third jab” while real-time data was being harvested. This week, new information was made available showing a strong link to better chances for survival and less severe illness among the population segments that received three vaccinations. The Reuters news agency quoted an adviser to the government as explaining that reduction in the rate of the pandemic’s spread and of severe cases is “likely due to third booster shots” and “up to 100,000 who now have natural immunity.” On Tuesday, Israel’s Health Ministry lowered the age for eligibility to receive the third vaccination to 30 years and up.