Breakthrough\u00a0COVID-19 cases\u00a0are getting attention in the wake of the\u00a0death of Colin Powell,\u00a0the former U.S. secretary of state and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.<\/p>\n
Powell\u2019s family said he died from\u00a0complications from the coronavirus. He was\u00a0fully vaccinated but also had multiple myeloma, a form of blood cancer, the family said. New Jersey Gov.\u00a0Phil Murphy\u00a0said at\u00a0his Monday coronavirus briefing\u00a0that\u00a0Powell\u2019s death\u00a0is putting a \u201cbright spotlight on\u00a0breakthrough infections\u00a0and deaths.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dr. Stephanie Silvera, Professor in the Public Health Department, said the Powell case is an example of why \u201cit is so important for all of us to do everything we can to reduce transmission and keep community rates low so that we can protect the most vulnerable around us.”<\/p>\n
\u201cEven with that, like most things in life, we are not talking about risk elimination. We are talking about risk reduction,\u201d Dr. Silvera said. \u201cYes, there will be a small number of people who will still become infected and an even smaller number who will develop severe illness and some who will die, but those numbers are much, much smaller than they are among the unvaccinated.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cParachutes have fail rates too, but I wouldn\u2019t recommend jumping out of a plane without one because they aren\u2019t effective 100% of the time,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n