[Uberphallus]

There shouldn't be a punishment.

In the European countries I'm familiar with, those people are now on unemployment benefits and their contract temporarily suspended. As a tax payer, I'm fine with that. I don't want unvaccinated health workers to get in close contact with my elderly mother, thank you.

[forgingahead]

Why though? Aren't the viral loads similar between the unvaccinated and fully vaccinated, and so the only benefit to being fully vaccinated is a private one (you are less susceptible to severe illness, though not totally immune)?

[Arnt]

No. The protection against severe illness is much better than the protection against transmission, but the latter is also not zero.

You may have seen something posted on HN recently, as I recall it was a Dutch study that compared transmission within families where the initial infectee was or was not vaccinated? And the result was basically a halving.

[Uberphallus]

> Aren't the viral loads similar between the unvaccinated and fully vaccinated

The viral loads in respiratory mucous at the peak are similar, sure, so from that one-dimensional metric that antivaxxers seem fixated in, it doesn't matter.

But vaccinated people:

1. Have fewer chances of getting infected.

2. The incubation period is shorter so, if infected they go around spreading it for a shorter amount of time.

3. Their disease lasts for much shorter so, again, less time spreading it around.

4. The symptoms are milder, so the chances of contaminating via coughing/sneezing are lower.

And let's not forget infecting other health workers reduces the quality of healthcare access overall.

[LurkingPenguin]

> Have fewer chances of getting infected.

I think more precise language is warranted here. If you're vaccinated, you have a reduced risk of becoming infected if exposed. The protection of the vaccines against infection, however, appears to decrease fairly rapidly, hence the discussion around boosters.

But if a vaccinated person (especially one who has lower neutralizing antibodies) puts themselves in environments where they inevitably have more exposures (think crowded, poorly-ventilated indoor spaces like bars) and they are not as vigilant about mask wearing, they might have a relatively higher risk of getting a breakthrough infection than even an unvaccinated person whose behavior leaves them with fewer exposures.

[spants]

Exactly. Plus if you are vaccinated you may not have (early) symptoms which means you can spread it before you realise that you are infected.

[Uberphallus]

The opposite. Vaccination for any disease generally leads to shorter incubation periods in breakthrough cases, because your immune system reacts much more rapidly to the pathogen, and most early symptoms are your immune system doing its job.