July 18 — White House COVID-19 coordinator Ashish Jha, MD, is urging Americans – especially people over 50 years old — to get up to date on their vaccinations as the “immune-evasive” BA.5 variant sweeps the nation.
“We’re still seeing some protection against infection but not as much,” Jha said Sunday on ABC’s “This Week.” “This is that immune evasive nature of this virus. So, if you got your booster, let’s say last November or December, you don’t have as much protection against this virus as you’d like.”
Federal health officials recommend people get a second booster shot about four months after the first booster if they’re immunocompromised or over 50 years old.
But statistics are discouraging. The CDC says only 28.5% of people over 50 who’ve gotten a first booster shot have gotten a second. Older people and the immunocompromised are most vulnerable to COVID/
“One of the key messages coming out of this moment is: If you are 50 or over and you have not gotten a shot this year … it is absolutely critical that you go out and get one now,” Jha said.
The highly transmissible BA.5 variant is now the dominant strain of COVID and is infecting higher numbers daily. The New York Times said its data shows a daily average of about 130,000 cases, up 15% over two weeks. Hospitalizations are up 20% and deaths up 10% over two weeks, but deaths and hospitalizations are still much lower than during the worst parts of the pandemic.
“We’re in a way better place than we were a year and a half ago,” Jha said.
Besides getting vaccinated, Jha said people should also wear face masks when appropriate.
“The public health science is very clear: If you’re in a crowded indoor space, especially if it’s poorly ventilated, wearing a mask reduces your risk of infection and reduces your risk of spreading it to others,” he said. “So, we’ve got to continue to encourage people to do that.”
