While respiratory illnesses like the flu tend to increase during the winter months, COVID-19 is not entirely seasonal. Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests COVID-19 infection rates are high or very high across the country this summer. But with a new vaccine expected to be available next month and the winter months approaching, Virginia health experts are urging people to get vaccinated early.
“COVID mutates faster than the flu,” said Heather Harmon Sloan with the Virginia Department of Health, “which is why it's so important to get the latest COVID-19 vaccine, which will be available soon.”
That's because new vaccines approved last week and expected as soon as September offer better protection against the latest variants of the virus. The new vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna target the specific strains of the virus blamed for the surge in infections this spring and summer.
Over the past three weeks, more than 3% of weekly emergency department visits in Virginia have been diagnosed with COVID-19, a number that has increased over the summer. While not all cases result in emergency department visits, wastewater surveillance to detect the presence of COVID has shown it to be at high levels nationwide. Virginia's latest surveillance shows cases remaining roughly steady statewide but increasing on the East Coast.
“What we're seeing right now is higher than what we were seeing at this time last year,” Harmon Sloan said.
She also believes some of the surge in cases and emergency room visits is due to people spending more time indoors in the summer heat, similar to how indoor gatherings in the winter contribute to the surge in infections.
“Respiratory viruses tend to spread more efficiently when we're all indoors, especially with poor ventilation,” she said.
Harmon Sloan said people can reduce the chance of infection by opening windows, maintaining social distance and wearing masks.
And while the new vaccines should target the same variants driving the summer outbreak, Harmon Sloan said anyone who was infected this summer could consider delaying getting the new vaccine for around three months.
That's because these people may have just recovered and may have a temporary resistance to the strain, but she still suggests talking to your doctor if you're unsure when to get your latest vaccination.
“Across the board, people who were vaccinated earlier this year, including those who had COVID-19, should get the new vaccine,” she said, noting that the vaccines that have arrived “will more effectively target the new specific variants that are now circulating in our community and what is causing these high prevalence.”
The CDC plans to launch a vaccine finder via its vaccines.gov website. Additionally, President Joe Biden's administration announced last week that it would again offer free at-home COVID test kits that can be delivered by mail. Kits can be ordered at covidtest.gov.
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