Do the unvaccinated disproportionately harm the vaccinated in a respiratory pandemic?

Fuente: arXiv
Gespeichert in:
Bibliographische Detailangaben
Hauptverfasser: Rancourt, Denis G., Hickey, Joseph
Format: Preprint
Veröffentlicht: 2024
Schlagworte:
Online-Zugang:
Tags: Tag hinzufügen
Keine Tags, Fügen Sie den ersten Tag hinzu!
_version_ 1866912162660745216
author Rancourt, Denis G.
Hickey, Joseph
author_facet Rancourt, Denis G.
Hickey, Joseph
contents A parameter $ψ$ was recently defined and introduced into the epidemiological modelling scientific literature, and is being accepted. The said parameter was used to argue that there was a disproportionate risk of infection incurred by vaccinated persons due to contacts with unvaccinated persons during the declared COVID-19 pandemic. Opposing published results show that, in general, there is virtually never a disproportionate risk to the vaccinated from the unvaccinated during a respiratory pandemic. Here, we show that the newly introduced vaccinology parameter $ψ$ is incorrectly defined and that the conclusions of disproportionate risk are not valid. Specifically, we prove that the originating authors Fisman et al. (2022, 2024) incorrectly defined and applied the parameter $ψ$. Their application would imply that the said risk increases with increasing segregation from the unvaccinated (up to complete segregation), increases with increasing vaccination coverage (up to complete coverage) and increases with increasing vaccine efficacy (up to perfect vaccine efficacy), which is impossible. Use of the erroneous parameter $ψ$ has the potential to encourage unnecessarily aggressive public health policies and interventions.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2412_15319
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Do the unvaccinated disproportionately harm the vaccinated in a respiratory pandemic?
Rancourt, Denis G.
Hickey, Joseph
Physics and Society
Populations and Evolution
A parameter $ψ$ was recently defined and introduced into the epidemiological modelling scientific literature, and is being accepted. The said parameter was used to argue that there was a disproportionate risk of infection incurred by vaccinated persons due to contacts with unvaccinated persons during the declared COVID-19 pandemic. Opposing published results show that, in general, there is virtually never a disproportionate risk to the vaccinated from the unvaccinated during a respiratory pandemic. Here, we show that the newly introduced vaccinology parameter $ψ$ is incorrectly defined and that the conclusions of disproportionate risk are not valid. Specifically, we prove that the originating authors Fisman et al. (2022, 2024) incorrectly defined and applied the parameter $ψ$. Their application would imply that the said risk increases with increasing segregation from the unvaccinated (up to complete segregation), increases with increasing vaccination coverage (up to complete coverage) and increases with increasing vaccine efficacy (up to perfect vaccine efficacy), which is impossible. Use of the erroneous parameter $ψ$ has the potential to encourage unnecessarily aggressive public health policies and interventions.
title Do the unvaccinated disproportionately harm the vaccinated in a respiratory pandemic?
topic Physics and Society
Populations and Evolution
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2412.15319