Alliance for Pandemic Preparedness

April 21, 2021

COVID-19 Outbreak Associated with a SARS-CoV-2 R.1 Lineage Variant in a Skilled Nursing Facility After Vaccination Program — Kentucky, March 2021

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  • Unvaccinated residents and healthcare personnel (HCP) at a Kentucky skilled nursing facility had a 3 and 4.1-fold higher risk of infection compared to residents and HCP who were vaccinated with the Pfrizer-BioNTech mRNA vaccine, respectively, during a SARS-CoV-2 outbreak identified on March 1, 2021. This outbreak was with a newly-introduced variant to the region called “R.1”, which is characterized by E484K and other mutations within the spike protein that have been identified in other variants of concern. 26 residents and 20 HCP tested positive, including 18 residents and four HCP who had received their second vaccine dose >14 days before the outbreak began. Vaccination was 86.5% protective against symptomatic illness among residents and 87.1% protective among HCP.

Cavanaugh et al. (Apr 21, 2021). COVID-19 Outbreak Associated with a SARS-CoV-2 R.1 Lineage Variant in a Skilled Nursing Facility After Vaccination Program — Kentucky, March 2021. MMWR. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. https://doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm7017e2