In Michigan, 246 fully vaccinated people tested positive for COVID-19, three died

Michigan data indicate that 246 state residents tested positive for COVID-19 more than two weeks past when they were considered fully vaccinated against the virus that causes the disease.

The possible instances of vaccine breakthrough were recorded during the first three months of the year, the Epoch Times reported.

Eleven of the people were hospitalized while three passed away, a Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) spokesperson informed the outlet via email. The fatalities involved individuals 65 or older.

"Data about hospitalization status for 129 cases were incomplete, and for the other set, hospitalization status was reported as unknown," the outlet noted. "The fully vaccinated cases were identified through weekly reviews of data on all confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the CCP virus. State officials compare the data to records of every person who has been fully vaccinated," according to the Epoch Times.

In the case of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, which require two shots, a person is fully vaccinated once two weeks have passed since their second shot. For the Johnson & Johnson single dose vaccine, a person is fully vaccinated two weeks after their one and only shot.

"These are individuals who have had a positive test 14 or more days after the last dose in the vaccine series. Some of these individuals may ultimately be excluded from this list due to continuing to test positive from a recent infection prior to being fully vaccinated. These cases are undergoing further review to determine if they meet other CDC criteria for determination of potential breakthrough, including the absence of a positive antigen or PCR test less than 45 days prior to the post-vaccination positive test," the spokesperson noted, according to the Epoch Times. "In general, these persons have been more likely to be asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic compared with vaccinated persons. Please note, to date, more than 1.7 million Michiganders have completed their COVID-19 vaccine. Some of these cases may be ruled out via additional investigation."

Vaccines have varying levels of effectiveness: The Pfizer vaccine was 95% effective in preventing the disease while the Moderna vaccine was said to be 94.1% effective in preventing COVID-19, according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Regarding the Johnson & Johnson vaccine: "Overall, the vaccine was approximately 67% effective in preventing moderate to severe/critical COVID-19 occurring at least 14 days after vaccination and 66% effective in preventing moderate to severe/critical COVID-19 occurring at least 28 days after vaccination," the FDA said. 

"While the majority of the population develops full immunity within 14 days of completion of their vaccine series, a small proportion appear to take longer to mount a full antibody response," the MDHHS spokeswoman said. "We expect to see breakthrough cases with any vaccination, including all the COVID-19 vaccines. The number of potential cases identified to date is not in excess of what might be expected with vaccines with 95 percent efficacy. Studies indicate that even if vaccinated people do become ill, they are far less likely to experience severe illness requiring hospitalization or resulting in death."