https://www.researchgate.net/publication/341354165_MMR_Vaccine_Appears_to_Confer_Strong_Protection_from_COVID-19_Few_Deaths_from_SARS-CoV-2_in_Highly_Vaccinated_Populations
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The MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccine was introduced in 1971. It was most commonly given as a single
vaccination from 1971-1978 then as a set of two vaccinations at least 28 days apart starting in 1979. Based upon its
year of introduction, most people today aged 49 and under would likely have had at least one MMR vaccination, and
those 41 and under would most likely have had two MMR vaccinations. This vaccine history may be a possible
explanation for a COVID-19 death rate pivot point close to age 50. The fact that some aged 40-49 only received a
single MRCV dose is a possible reason why this age range has a marginally higher death rate than those under 40.
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In countries where vaccination "catch up" programs have been instituted in recent decades there appears to be the
lowest incidence of death from COVID-19, and in a few countries no deaths at all. In many of these countries, two
doses of MRCV were given to older teenagers, and in some cases also to young adults, in addition to children.
The potential lethality of COVID-19 is related, in part, to it easy and rapid transmissibility, leading to wide-spread
exposure. Early data suggested that each person would likely transmit the virus to two other people, leading to a
quick, logarithmic progression of the infection. Under the theory of herd immunity, having large portions of the
population with immunity, dramatically reduces the transmissibility of the disease. It is not necessary in any single
population to vaccinate 100% of individuals with MRCV to eliminate nearly all deaths from COVID-19. Instead, one
has to only provide enough coverage with MRCV so that the effective reproductive number (R) of the virus through
each patient is less than 1, which stops the logarithmic progression. A drop in the R value below 1 likely explains why
several populations including those of Madagascar, Hong Kong, and South Korea, which have all had aggressive
MRCV vaccination programs, have reported so few deaths from COVID-19.
Published data demonstrates the following associations:
Madagascar, a country with 26.26 million people, recently vaccinated 7.2 million of its citizens (over 27.4% of the total
population) with MRCV in 2019. This is in addition to any citizens who may have already been vaccinated. There
have been no deaths at all from COVID-19 in Madagascar as of May 4, 2020. [2]
Hong Kong in 1997 initiated a mass immunization campaign targeting infants through 19-year old adults. During
2019, Hong Kong instituted a free MMR vaccination program for all adult healthcare workers, airport staff and foreign
domestic helpers, and also made MMR vaccinations available to many other adults seeking them. Hong Kong
continued this program into 2020. Only four people have died from COVID-19 in all of Hong Kong despite its
proximity the epicenter of the pandemic, just 563 miles away in Wuhan, China. Hong Kong is the world's fourth most
dense country in the world with a population nearly the size of New York City which recently had large scale protests,
with over 1 million people at some rallies, continuing well into 2020. Nonetheless, no new COVID-19 deaths have
been reported during the seven-week period ending 3 May 2020. [3] [4]
On the opposite end of the spectrum, Belgium is the country with the highest COVID-19 death rate in the world.
Belgium didn't even offer MMR vaccinations until 1985, and it wasn't until 1995 that it began giving the recommended
two doses of MMR vaccinations per person. Even though Belgium has a population just 54% larger than Hong Kong,
it has had a staggering 7,844 deaths from COVID-19, compared to Hong Kong's four. [5] [6]
