Stop to think for a minute how bad Covid would be if Omicrom and Delta would have been widely circulating 12 months ago, just before vaccines first got the approval to be used in the general public.
In the earliest days of the pandemic some thought it would be summer of 2021 at the earliest before we would see an effective vaccine. Some thought it might be fall of 2021. Had the vaccine only been made available in September of this year on a widespread basis rather than January, it is likely hundreds of thousands more would be dead. 60,000 people died in September of 2021 alone when virtually anyone 16 or older had easy access to a vaccine. Without a vaccine how many would have died in just September?
Even with fully two thirds of this country vaccinated (and when you subtract the kids under 5 who are almost 100% unvaccinated that number is significantly higher) we are still seeing hospitalizations in many places as bad or worse than they were at the very worst times of the pandemic in 2020. We are seeing off the charts numbers of positive tests. We are seeing 1300 deaths a day, which is as bad or worse than many of the early weeks of the pandemic before vaccines, before we knew anything about effective treatments.
How many would be dead without the vaccines? Many millions in this country alone I would guess.