I recently reported that only seven million Americans chose to get the new covid booster shots, despite heavy campaigning from health officials and Big Pharma.
The rates are now being described as “abysmal” by one health expert, putting in jeopardy plans to have covid boosters become part of annual vaccination routines along the lines of flu shots.
In the first month following the availability of the new COVID-19 vaccines, a mere 7% of U.S. adults and 2% of children received the shots, a rate deemed “abysmal” by one health expert.Even among the demographics most vulnerable to COVID-19, the uptake remains distressingly low. As of Oct. 14, only about 20% of individuals aged 75 or older had been vaccinated, and just 15% of those between the ages of 65 and 74….The data released Thursday also indicated that nearly 40% of adults said they do not intend to get the new vaccine. A similar percentage of parents expressed reluctance to vaccinate their children.During the meeting, Dr. Camille Kotton of Harvard Medical School raised alarm over the uptake, referring to the figures as “abysmal,” and called for improved public education efforts to bridge the gap.Federal authorities had intended to make COVID-19 vaccination as routine as getting annual flu shots, but Dr. David Kimberlin of the University of Alabama at Birmingham expressed dismay at the challenge of effectively conveying that message.“The recommendations are not being heard,” he said at Thursday’s meeting.
Even older adults are rejecting the shots, despite the fact that they tend to be more at risk for significant health effects associated with covid infections.
The uptake is weak even among those most at risk of severe illness. Only one in five people age 75 or older has been vaccinated, along with about 15 percent of those ages 65 to 74, according to the survey of nearly 15,000 people….Covid hospitalizations among adults aged 75 and older are two to three times as high as among those aged 65 to 74. Rates of hospitalization are highest among Native Americans, Alaska Natives and Black Americans.Less than 1 percent of Native Americans and Alaska Natives, and 7.6 percent of Black Americans, had received the vaccine as of Oct. 14.“I’m really disappointed in the low rates of vaccination, because I think it’s a major missed opportunity to improve our overall level of health,” said Dr. Camille Kotton, a physician at Massachusetts General Hospital and an adviser to the C.D.C.
Perhaps the growing concerns about side effects associated with the vaccines, versus protections offered by natural immunity, is a contributing factor.
Vaccines for Covid-19 and influenza may slightly increase the risk of strokes caused by blood clots in the brains of seniors, particularly when the two vaccines are given at the same time and when they are given to adults who are age 85 and older, according to a new study.The safety signal was detected by experts at the US Food and Drug Administration who analyzed data from Medicare claims.It is the second study to find an elevated risk of stroke for seniors after Covid-19 and flu vaccinations given together.
Despite the disinterest and distrust, our press dutifully reports on the covid variants du jour.
A new Covid variant has become dominant in the U.S., but relatively few people have thus far gotten the new shots that could offer some protection against it.The variant, called HV.1, replaced EG.5 as the country’s most prevalent this week, according to data released Friday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.The two variants are genetically similar versions of omicron.HV.1 makes up around 25% of Covid cases now, up from around 1% at the beginning of August. EG.5, meanwhile, represents nearly 22% of cases, down from 24% at the start of the month.
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