COVID-19: can the new variant defeat vaccines

Do Covid-19 vaccines prevent disease but not infection or infectivity, and will be new variant overcome the protection conferred by vaccination?

23 December 2020

Presented by Chris Smith with Kim Hill, Radio New Zealand National.

Production by Chris Smith.

COVID-19-MAP

Credit:

CC0, via Pixabay

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Kim Hill talks to virologist Chris Smith about Covid-19 in 2020, in retrospect and right now. What's the situation with global access to vaccines for the new coronavirus, and will the "new variant" emerging in the UK defeat the present vaccine repertoire? Where did this variant come from, what does it tell us about how viruses evolve, and is the UK looking at another lockdown post Christmas?