RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Virtually all Omicron cases in Denmark were reported in vaccinated individuals, most of whom were “fully vaccinated,” new data from the Danish government show.
Seventy-nine percent of Danes who had contracted Omicron by Dec. 15 were fully vaccinated. That’s according to a report released Tuesday by the Statens Serum Institut (SSI), a Danish health ministry that tracks suspected COVID-19 variants.
Of the 17,767 Omicron infections (as per December 15) registered in Denmark since the first case was reported on Nov. 22, more than 14,000 were among people with dual vaccinations.
Those who had received booster vaccination accounted for another 10.6% of cases of the new variant, and single-dose injectors accounted for another 1.8%. The unvaccinated, about one-fifth of the Danish population, accounted for only 8.5 percent of Omicron infections.
Vaccinated individuals also controlled cases of other suspected COVID-19 strains. More than three-quarters of Danes who had contracted delta or another variant in addition to Omicron between Nov. 22 and Dec. 15 received at least one dose, and 73% received a vaccination or the entire course of treatment, according to ISS data.
In Denmark, 77.6% of the population was “fully vaccinated” as of Sunday, including 35% of residents who have received the third dose since the Scandinavian country began rolling out booster doses to the general public last month.
Consistent with the official narrative and its data, Denmark currently has one of the highest infection rates in the world and the second-highest Omicron rate in Europe, behind the United Kingdom, which has similar vaccination rates and an even higher booster dose rate.
Danish government researchers have acknowledged that vaccination does not provide adequate protection against the putative Omicron variant, and some analyses suggest that it increases the risk of contracting it.
Stunning numbers from Denmark:
56% double vaccinated are catching 65% of "other variants" & 79% of Omicron
Most vulnerable group to Omicron BY FAR
25% boosted still catch 10% of Omicron cases, while unvaccinated catch 8.5%
This is worse than vaccine failure. This is damage. pic.twitter.com/ckEXv3iff3
— William Makis MD (@MakisMD) December 20, 2021
Experts also cautioned that a sharp increase in breakthrough cases might indicate “primordial antigenic sin,” which occurs when vaccination results in the inability to generate an effective immune response to a viral variant, leading to worse health outcomes for those vaccinated.
Nevertheless, COVID-19 is a treatable disease for the vast majority of people, and Omicron so far appears to be less lethal than previous “strains.”
According to ISS, only 0.6% of Danes with Omicron have been hospitalized since Nov. 22, compared with 1.6% for other variants during the same period.
Nevertheless, the Danish government responded with severe restrictions on Christmas: Cinemas and other public facilities have been closed, vaccination cards are required for buses and trains, and vaccination of children between the ages of 5 and 11 is being stepped up.
Booster vaccines will be available to Danes aged 40 and older as early as 4.5 months after the second dose.
Notably, Denmark had lifted all COVID measures in September and hailed vaccination as the way out of the pandemic. “The epidemic is under control; we have a record vaccination rate,” Heunicke had said at the time.