COVID deaths among the vaxxed rises
Boosters are more important than you think. (Photo: Reuters/Eloisa Lopez)
There’s this feeling that COVID is over. But let's be real. Just yesterday, North Korea declared a 'major national emergency' as it saw its first case of COVID-19. Cases and deaths are also on the rise due to highly transmissible variants like the Omicron BA.2.12 (which is now also in the Philippines), weakening vaccine protection, and fewer people taking their boosters.
Until recently, there was a wide gap in deaths between the vaccinated and unvaccinated. That gap has since shrunk. According to a CNN analysis of data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, less than a third of vaccinated people who died from a breakthrough case of COVID in January and February had gotten a booster shot. The remaining two-thirds had only received their primary series.
But evidence continues to build around the critical importance of booster shots.
A study published earlier this week points to a fourth dose of Moderna or Pfizer/BioNTech's mRNA vaccine as providing a "substantial" boost to immunity at similar or even better levels than a third dose.
Two earlier studies out of Israel support this evidence, showing that hospitalization and death rates from COVID-19 could be reduced with a fourth vaccine dose given at least four months after the third dose.
A surge incoming?
While daily COVID cases and deaths are down compared to the Omicron surge in January and February, experts are wary of another coming wave. In the US, the White House issued a new warning for a potential 100 million COVID-19 infections later this year.
Here in the Philippines, there is also a warning for COVID-19 cases in the country to rise a week or two after election day. This is primarily due to the removal of face masks, lack of social distancing, and long wait times in voting precincts without proper ventilation, making the elections a potential superspreader event. The good news is that over 7K received COVID-19 vaccinations on election day according to the Department of Health.
With extensive lockdowns appearing to be no longer an option for a COVID-19 surge, the hope is to get greater booster coverage.
“Our objective is to increase first booster shot coverage among the [eligible] population. Because based on data, if you already got the first booster or third dose, there’s a big chance of [you] getting protection, even with these subvariants, against severe disease,” said Dr. Rontgene Solante, a member of the government’s vaccine expert panel and head of the adult infectious diseases and tropical medicine section at San Lazaro Hospital in Manila.
Thankfully, the Philippines began administering a fourth dose or second booster shot of the COVID-19 vaccine last April 25. Remember, COVID-19 deaths are preventable. So if you're eligible, there’s no better time than now for that second booster.
