Gottlieb s comments come as speculation grows that the U.K. could delay the lifting of all lockdown measures in England, set for June 21, due to the increasing prevalence of the Delta variant, which was first discovered in India.
The most severe cases involving the Delta variant appear to be in unvaccinated people or those who are only partially vaccinated, Gottlieb said. It does seem to be a more dangerous variant. That said, two doses of the vaccine seem to be very protective. People who are fully vaccinated, I think, are pretty well protected against this new variant based on the accruing evidence, added Gottlieb, who led the FDA in the Trump administration from 2017 to 2019. He s now on the board of vaccine maker Pfizer.