Truth sandwich on the topic of efficacy

Fact: The protection offered by vaccines is good, but not 100%.

Myth: “Vaccines are pointless as they do not provide 100% protection.”

No vaccine can claim to protect all recipients without exception, just as no medication works equally for all patients. Despite this, vaccines are effective: They reduce the likelihood of becoming infected, developing the disease, and of the pathogen being passed on to others; and they can also markedly reduce the severity of an illness.

It is naturally desirable for medical treatments to be effective in all patients and under all circumstances. However, no currently available vaccine can guarantee 100% protection. It is understandable that this may be unsatisfactory. Nevertheless, many other treatments are also not 100% effective: Taking ibuprofen for headaches, for example, does not help 100% of individuals. Still, many people trust in the beneficial effects of the medication, since in many cases it was able to help their headache. Much the same applies to vaccines: Even if vaccines are not 100% effective, this does not mean that vaccines are fundamentally incapable of protecting. An efficacy of 90%, for example, against a disease reduces the risk of catching the disease substantially and protects a large majority of vaccinated individuals.

In fact: Vaccination is meaningful even though protection cannot be 100%.

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