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England’s coronavirus vaccine campaign is significantly reducing cases of COVID-19, with a drop of around 70% in infections among healthcare workers who have had a first dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech shot, British health officials said on Monday. Data analysed by Public Health England (PHE) showed the Pfizer provided high levels of protection against infection and symptomatic disease from a single dose, and that hospitalisation and death from COVID-19 will be reduced by more 75% in elderly people who have had a first dose. (2/22)

For those over 80 years old, one dose is 57% effective against symptomatic COVID-19 disease after three or four weeks of inoculation, rising to more than 85% after the second dose. Early data suggest vaccinated people who go on to become infected are far less likely to die or be hospitalized, Public Health England added. (Goldstein, 2/22)

The new information from the U.K., published Monday, is preliminary and hasn’t been reviewed by other scientists, but provides reasons for optimism that vaccines offer a route out of a pandemic that has claimed at least 2.5 million lives world-wide and sickened tens of millions. The data suggest vaccines are most successful in preventing hospitalizations and deaths, a top concern of health authorities. While vaccines also suppress new infections, the effect isn’t as pronounced. (Douglas and Colchester, 2/22)

Health workers were tested for Covid-19 infection every two weeks using PCR tests and twice a week with lateral flow tests, Dr. Susan Hopkins, strategic response director at PHE, explained, meaning "there was a lot of asymptomatic testing," she said. "Overall we are seeing a really strong effect to reducing any infection: asymptomatic and symptomatic," Hopkins said during a press conference held by the UK's Science Media Centre on Monday. (John, Senthilingam, Kennedy and Dean, 2/22)