Real-World Study Suggests Bharat Biotech’s COVID-19 Shot Is Only 50 Percent Effective

India-based Bharat Biotech’s COVID-19 vaccine, Covaxin (BBV152), was just 50 percent effective in preventing infections among hospital employees in India who received the recommended two doses.

The results of the real-world study differ sharply from the vaccine’s pivotal phase 3 data, which found an effectiveness rate of 77.8 percent.

Several differences in the study population and setting may account for the disparity, said the new study’s primary investigator Devashish Desai, of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in New Delhi, and his colleagues, who reported their findings in The Lancet.

The study, which focused on healthcare workers, was conducted during India’s peak COVID-19 surge, when 35 percent of the population was testing positive for the virus. The infections were largely caused by the Delta variant, the researchers said.