Booster 'Hole'?

 This morning, I read over a piece on Focus, and it's a curious (even comical) situation on this booster-hype for Covid.

Over the whole past month....hour after hour....hyped-up chatter via politicians, journalists and virus experts in Germany.  They wanted to get everyone on the 'path' to get the 3rd shot (the booster).  

So here's the thing.....between Moderna and Biontech....apparently the government (before the new SPD-Green-FDP coalition arrived)....had a regular schedule on their mind.....that you'd get your booster around the 9th to 12th month.  That means a handful of folks would get it in January, and around April through July.....the bulk of folks would get their 3rd shot.

That was the production cycle that each company signed up to.  

This new 'talk'?  Lauterbach and crew were now hitched up to the idea of a bulk situation here in December, and really taking off in January....something like a million-plus vaccinations per day.  

Well....the vaccine ain't there.  

What the companies tell the government?  An average delivery pace for December through March, and bigger bulk deliveries as you get into April/May.

The gap or missing vaccination amount?  Sixty-million doses.

What will happen here?  Just being a normal capitalist.....I'd take a guess that both Biontech and Moderna will say fine.....we can achieve one-third of the missing amount in January, and the rest in February....holding out their hand for the pay-off.  How much?  Unknown, but someone will have to find cash for this gimmick to work.

Timelines changed?  Lets be honest here....to do this massive million-plus a day....the general plan is to haul in dentists, pharmacy folks, and animal-veterinarians (on top of regular doctors) to give the shots.  

I would be guessing that something starts in late January (mostly with senior citizens) and the regular folks don't get an invite until mid-March.  

The shock by the Health Minister?  This sudden reason for surging on the booster?  It wasn't on anyone's mind three months ago.  Everyone had the idea that vax episode one (first and second shot) were a nine to twelve month thing.  The necessity of driving the bulk of the nation over the next two months for a booster?  Either there's something they aren't telling people, or the necessity seems to be over-reacted.  

Generally, I think these studies accomplished in past couple of months....saying the antibodies are going 'pretty fast' and effective nature is dismal by the sixth month.  But at the same time.....you really don't want to admit this.  Suggesting to folks that you've lost one-third of your antibodies by the 100th day....probably dissolves some confidence.  

Revision 99 to the 'plan'?  Come and gone, I would say.