NORFOLK, Va. - According to the Virginia Department of Health, more than 11,000 Virginians have died of COVID-19, and more than 769,000 have been infected.
The state health department says unvaccinated people make up 98% of Virginia's current COVID-19 cases, but even vaccinated people can still get the virus.
"I was cautious this whole time," said Nicole Carry, a Norfolk resident.
For more than six months after she got the Moderna vaccine, Carry has been doing her part to steer clear of the coronavirus.
"It was a bit of a shock to me that I tested positive for COVID," Carry said.
Two weeks ago, Carry got what she hoped to have avoided - the virus, possibly from attending a funeral.
"A few days later I had cold symptoms, a slight cough, kind of sinus symptoms," she said.
Although her symptoms were mild, Carry was quarantined and went on bed rest, checking her oxygen levels and monitoring her low-grade fever.
"Some individuals, despite getting the vaccine, may still get ill," said Dr. Parham Jaberi, the acting director of the Norfolk Department of Public Health.
The symptoms, he said, are often mild, and the disease is known as a breakthrough case.
"One of the ongoing theories is that the Delta variant, which is more aggressive, could spread faster, and it evolved later so the vaccine is not as effective against the vaccine," Jaberi said.
The VDH just put out a new dashboard showing breakthrough cases in fully vaccinated people as well as cases that impacted the unvaccinated.
Since January, breakthrough cases have affected around 10,000 people for the around 4.7 million who have been vaccinated. That's around 0.2%.
For Carry, she played it safe and quarantined. Ten days later, she tested negative.
"I want everyone to be careful with this Delta variant. You can still have a vulnerability to it, even being vaccinated," Carry said.
