By Cailley LaPara, Bloomberg News
In the coming weeks, a new COVID booster shot will be introduced to Americans. This booster is designed to combat recent variants of the virus, just as cases are beginning to rise with the onset of colder weather. However, there is a catch: COVID does not seem to follow the seasonal patterns that many anticipated.
Gregory Poland, director of the Vaccine Research Group at the Mayo Clinic, states that the approach of treating COVID as a seasonal virus is flawed. He explains that everyone is basing their understanding on the flu, but this approach is not working because COVID is not behaving like a seasonal virus.
The virus has proved to be full of surprises since the start of the global pandemic in 2020. Earlier this year, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) suggested a shift away from frequent boosters and the adoption of a seasonal shot, similar to the flu shot. The upcoming booster this fall will target the XBB.1.5 variant, which was prevalent in June when the FDA issued guidelines for vaccine developers.
COVID has not followed the seasonal pattern of other viruses. Mini waves of the virus occur every few months, and recent data shows rising hospitalizations in the U.S. after a decline in the spring. By contrast, the flu disappears in warmer months and resurfaces in the colder months. This raises the question of why COVID is being treated as a seasonal virus. Bloomberg surveyed 11 immunologists, public health officials, and infectious disease experts about the best approach to COVID vaccination. Although there was no clear consensus, all agreed that COVID continues to outsmart us, making it difficult to determine the most effective vaccination strategy.
COVID remains unpredictable, and it’s still not fully understood why infections occur year-round while other respiratory diseases are primarily a concern in the winter. The virus mutates rapidly, which means scientists are constantly playing catch-up to understand the behavior of new variants and the severity of infection they can cause. As COVID evolves, our approach to fighting it, including vaccine schedules, may need to evolve as well.
William Schaffner, an infectious disease specialist at Vanderbilt University, acknowledges the uncertainty surrounding COVID and the current vaccination strategy. He expresses the hope that the strategy will work if the virus doesn’t misbehave.
The fall booster plan takes into account several factors. People tend to spend more time indoors during winter, especially during the holidays, which leads to increased virus spread. Six experts surveyed believe that a fall booster campaign will help protect a large portion of the population against serious infection during the anticipated winter surge, particularly elderly and immunocompromised individuals. Another challenge in vaccination is getting people to show up, as only a small percentage of eligible Americans received the COVID booster last fall. A regular fall vaccination schedule could encourage higher participation by being easier to remember and by allowing people to combine their COVID shot with their flu shot.
However, this year saw an increase in indoor activities and heat waves during the summer, which experts believe contributed to the recent rise in cases. Some experts suggest an earlier booster roll-out to mitigate the summer surge and vaccinate students before they return to school.
Three experts even propose a return to a more frequent vaccination schedule, although health officials shifted to an annual plan due to low vaccine uptake. Updating the vaccine annually is more feasible for vaccine makers, although it still requires time and resources, even with messenger RNA technology. Individuals at high risk of severe illness are still advised to receive additional booster doses.
Health experts will review the latest shots from Moderna, Pfizer, and Novavax on September 12, following which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are expected to recommend them for most Americans. The companies claim that this season’s vaccine offers some protection against currently-circulating variants. Novavax anticipates that COVID shots will continue to be an annual seasonal shot for most of the population. Gregory Poland suggests that the key to staying ahead of the virus is to remain flexible and adapt vaccination plans as the virus evolves.
In conclusion, COVID is a constantly evolving and unpredictable virus. It’s important to approach vaccination strategies with flexibility and stay informed to ensure appropriate precautions are taken.
—With assistance from Madison Muller
©2023 Bloomberg L.P. Visit bloomberg.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Denial of responsibility! VigourTimes is an automatic aggregator of Global media. In each content, the hyperlink to the primary source is specified. All trademarks belong to their rightful owners, and all materials to their authors. For any complaint, please reach us at – [email protected]. We will take necessary action within 24 hours.
