Instead of beating the dead horse of “get the COVID-19 vaccine” (which you really should), we’re going to move on to a closely related topic: Get the COVID-19 booster.
Gov. Jim Justice’s comment that if you’re breathing, you can get the booster isn’t quite accurate, but he has the right idea. In addition to breathing, if you are fully vaccinated adult who is six or more months out from your second Pfizer or Moderna dose — or if it’s been more than two months since your Johnson and Johnson shot — you need to get the booster.
We understand that it’s frustrating: You’ve already gotten jabbed, suffered through the side-effects and now you have to get another needle stab?
To understand why the booster shot is so important, we can look at what’s happened in Israel and the U.K.
Israel has been a sort of litmus test for vaccination efforts. The country had a quick and early vaccine rollout, and the majority of eligible citizens got their shots. A study published in The New England Journal of Medicine monitored COVID infections in Israel after vaccines became available. The study ultimately concluded that vaccine efficacy against the Delta variant decreased for all age groups after six months. The likelihood of severe infection also increased for vaccinated individuals 40 years old and older after six months.
In the U.K., another country that had a relatively early and successful vaccine rollout, a massive COVID infection spike in October was driven primarily by unvaccinated children who had gone back to school and older vaccinated people who were several months removed from their second dose.
West Virginia is starting to look like Israel and the U.K.: about 9% of confirmed COVID cases are breakthroughs, according to the DHHR COVID dashboard. Gov. Jim Justice noted in his Nov. 12 press conference about 28% of West Virginia’s hospitalizations are people who are vaccinated.
This is not to say that COVID vaccines don’t work — they do work, and they do help protect against severe illness and death. Like many vaccines, though, the ones for COVID do lose some effectiveness over time. That’s why Justice has opened the door to anyone 18 and over, for whom it has been six months or more since their second dose, to get a booster shot.
Public Health Commissioner Ayne Amjad said Monday that many West Virginians would qualify for a booster anyway because of poor health conditions. It’s not a wild guess to think that the same overall poor health of West Virginians is also a contributing factor to breakthrough cases.
Health officials are also concerned about a winter surge — and they have every right to be.
Soon, people will be congregating to celebrate the holidays. At the same time, the weather is getting colder, limiting opportunities for outdoor gatherings and forcing people inside. Not to mention the usual winter bugs are already making the rounds.
The booster is an important layer of protection between vaccinated individuals and an increasing risk of infection. If you had a strong reaction to one type of vaccine, consider asking a health professional about getting a different type for the booster.
For information on how and where to get your booster shot, see our vaccine clinic listings every day on A2 or check the Mon County Health Department website or Facebook page.
