The Kontinental Hockey League, based in Russia, will apparently not be vaccinating its players and staff to protect them from COVID-19. That's according to a report by hockey journalist Andrew Zadarnowski.
"The KHL said that over 500 players and personnel contracted COVID this season thus far, and that their players won't be getting vaccinated because of the unknown side effects," said Zadarnowski
"They are basically going for the herd immunity approach in order to keep their season going."
While this may seem like a strange decision on the outside, it's worth mentioning that Russia has had its own vaccine for months that never went through the stringent protocols like the ones that are being distributed in North America and other parts of the world. According to a report by The Associated Press, "the Russian-made [vaccine] has received a mixed response, with reports of empty Moscow clinics that offered the shot to health care workers and teachers — the first members of the public designated to receive it." It's also been noted that Russian president Vladimir Putin has yet to take the vaccine himself, despite it being available for a while. Whether the KHL could purchase some of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine is not known.
As for the concept of herd immunity, that process was attempted in Sweden and it's fair to say it didn't work. From December 3rd to the 13th, the country had more than 82,000 cases of the novel Corona virus. The KHL has had to postpone several games this season due to localized outbreaks of COVID-19. It has also been allowing fans at arenas since the 2020-21 season began back in September.
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