Natural Selection of Refuseniks?

I got the latest update on the number of Covid cases in Allegheny county. There are some interesting patterns emerging.

As expected, the number of cases for those over 65 is smaller than during our previous spikes, reflecting the number of people in this demographic that have been vaccinated.

The greatest number of cases now are for individuals 25-49, which represents the largest population in the report. This also makes sense as this cohort is only now getting vaccinated.

We are seeing more reported cases among children, especially K-12.

What interests me is the 50-64 age group. I need to confirm this but it looks like this number is creeping up. Here in Allegheny county, this group has been able to be vaccinated for several weeks. So, this number should be coming down.

Another interesting note is the number of women becoming infected has been more than the number of men infected. This trend has been going on for several weeks.

If I can get my laptop up and running (yes, I do all of this blogging on a iPhone), I’ll see if I can track it on a spreadsheet. But it looks to me like we are running into some natural selection among women, who tend to be skittish about vaccines, and the 50-64 year olds, who I suspect includes a higher number of refuseniks.

The b.1.1.7 variant is dominating this most recent spike. It’s more easily spread and may be more deadly because it is likely to give recipients a higher viral load.

So, if the unvaccinated are getting this variant and spreading it, they’re more likely to get sicker and end up in the hospital.

The good news is that the number of deaths is coming down. The bad news is if you get it, you’ll be sicker.

AND being unvaccinated means contributing to the continued shutdowns or reductions of certain businesses.

Mother Nature is a bitch but she’s pretty upfront about her methods. No one who doesn’t get a shot should be surprised.