The New Normal: Virus Protection

According to recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the incidence of flu, RSV, and COVID-19 is rising, with a higher than baseline percentage of medical visits being attributed to respiratory illnesses at 6.1% as of January 2, 2023. 

The abandonment of mask-wearing by some individuals has unfortunately facilitated the transmission of these diseases. In an effort to address the number of school absences and some students and staff’s concerns about wearing masks and getting vaccinated, the Wolf Press reached out to Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Chelsea Lane, a scientist from the National Institutes of Health (NIH).   These are the two strongholds that oversee virus policy for the entire United States.  Not only was the Wolf Press granted the interview, but the CDC also filmed the interview and now uses the footage from this interview on their social media platforms!  

Chelsea Lane explained, “The National Institutes of Health is the steward of medical and behavioral research for the entire nation. Its mission is to seek fundamental knowledge about the nature and behavior of living systems.” 

The new vaccine for the new SARS-CoV-2 variant BA.4 and BA.5 is called the Bivalent booster which can prevent the spread of the Omicron virus.  According to Dr. Walensky, the newly updated booster is even better than the previous vaccines.  “The new booster is great for the new omicron variant, which is now the dominant variant.” 

The booster increases the immune response after immunization from the vaccine has naturally waned. The vaccine does this by giving the body more neutralized antibodies to prevent breakthrough cases. Even though the booster is not 100% effective it can decrease the symptoms of Covid 19.  By getting vaccinated with the booster, most people won’t get severely sick from the current Covid-19 variant.  Symptoms simply include a runny nose, headache, mild or severe fatigue, sore throat, and/or sneezing.

Dr. Lane explains this more by saying, “It trains your immune system to recognize the virus so that you get an immune response without getting infected... And then once you encounter the virus then your immune system can recognize it.   And then what we hope is to prevent either infection or severe disease by the virus.”

Dr. Walensky added,  “It broadens the protection against those new variants.  It also actually boosts your protection. Hence the name because we do know with your primary series that that effect kind of wanes over time and you need a boost like you get your flu shot every year. You need a boost in order to improve your protection. So it extends the breadth of that protection and extends the length of that protection. I would absolutely recommend it.”  

According to data that the CDC has collected, only  15.1% of the United States is vaccinated with the Bivalent. The vaccination rate of the bivalent is concerning.  The cause of this low vaccination rate may be attributed to rumors circulating that the vaccine decreases fertility or because many have been told to wait three months to get the vaccine if they got covid. This is because when you get covid-19 you also get anti-bodies so it may not make sense to get more antibodies if you already have.  With 3 million cases of covid all together in New York according to the New York Times.   The infertility rumors can be disproven because the vaccine process is extremely safe and looked over. There are many steps in creating the vaccine and it is tested on large groups of people and animals before open to the public including FDA approval. 

In addition to boosters, people can protect themselves by wearing masks and keeping away from large gatherings. With the kn95 mask filtering out 95% of the air, wearing a mask is extremely effective. As half of all tests in NYC are taken with home tests, many think it is way easier to take the test, because you do not need to go to a testing center. The home tests, while not always accurate, have an 80% accuracy rate according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

 “We should follow the levels of infection and of severe disease in the community to get a sense as to whether it's important to wear a mask right now,”  according to Dr. Wilensky.  Information to help decide whether or not to wear a mask can be found on the CDC website.

People can learn where to get vaccinated at vaccinefinder.nyc.gov.  This website displays where you can find available vaccination centers,  directions to the location, and schedule an appointment. Now everyone can get the Bivalent booster at almost any local pharmacy. 

In regards to the future of Covid-19 Dr. Walensky states “It may very well become one of those respiratory viruses that we tackle every single year. So instead of saying cold and flu season we may be saying cold flu and Covid season.”