Pfizer shot less effective in South Africa after Omicron emerges - study

Vials labelled "VACCINE Coronavirus COVID-19" and a syringe are seen in front of a displayed Pfizer logo in this illustration taken December 11, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Pfizer-BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine has been less effective in South Africa at keeping people infected with the virus out of hospital since the Omicron variant emerged last month, a real-world study published on Tuesday showed.

Between Nov. 15 and Dec. 7, people who had received two doses of the shot had a 70% chance of avoiding hospitalisation, down from 93% during the previous wave of Delta infections, the study showed.