Here’s what to know about COVID-19 boosters
Beginning Sept. 20, Ohioans will be able to start getting a COVID-19 booster shot.
The first people to be vaccinated for the virus, including frontline health care workers and nursing home employees and residents will be first in line for another dose.
But, everyone should get a booster shot eight months after completing their initial vaccination regimen, according to an announcement Wednesday from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Although the vaccines on the market still appear effective at preventing severe disease and hospitalization due to COVID-19, immunity appears to wane around eight months, which triggered the decision to begin allowing boosters.
With the move to begin boosters come questions about timing, logistics and more that doctors at Ohio State University’s Wexner Medical Center sought to answer in a Thursday briefing.
Is it OK to get a flu shot and a COVID booster at the same time?
With boosters becoming available to some Ohioans at the end of September, it will also be time for many to start getting their annual flu shots. Flu activity often picks up in October and it takes about two weeks for a flu shot to trigger an immune response for adequate protection, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
It should be fine for Ohioans to get both their flu shot and their next dose of a COVID-19 vaccine at the same time, if they’re due for the booster then, said Dr. Susan Koletar, an infectious disease physician at Wexner Medical Center.
Getting both shots at once could actually make the booster rollout a lot easier and more efficient, Koletar said.
The downside, Koletar said, is that getting both shots at once has the potential to make the recipient feel “crummy” for a day or so. Any reaction could be similar to the mild symptoms of fatigue some people felt after getting their second dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.
Does the brand of the COVID booster need to match the original shots?
Experts prefer that people try to get a booster from the same vaccine maker of their original shots, Koletar said.
Therefore, someone who was vaccinated with Pfizer shots should try to get a Pfizer booster. The same goes for recipients of the Moderna vaccine.
But, if that’s not doable, Koletar said the thinking is that it’s OK to go with another brand if it’s a similar vaccine.
For instance, both Pfizer and Moderna make COVID vaccines using MRNA, which initiate an immune response by exposing someone to genetic material of the virus. Either one would likely be fine to get if someone can’t find the brand they need, Koletar said.
A decision on boosters for people who were inoculated with a singledose Johnson & Johnson vaccine has yet to be made.
The J&J shot was rolled out a few months after the Pfizer and Moderna ones and data on its ongoing effectiveness is still being collected. It’s expected that a booster will be needed for people who got the J&J vaccine, but it might not be for a few months since the shot debuted later on, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
What will the booster rollout look like?
It’s unclear yet just what a booster rollout will look like, though it’ll likely be far smoother than the initial launch of the vaccines, said Dr. Andrew Thomas, chief clinical officer at Wexner Medical Center.
Early on, COVID-19 vaccines were mainly available through public health departments and hospitals and appointments filled up quick.
Now, they’re available at nearly every pharmacy and most places don’t require an appointment. The medical center plans to open more clinics of its own in the coming weeks to administer shots, Thomas said.
Since COVID vaccines opening up to most Ohioans in March or April, that could create a demand for more boosters just before the holidays in November and December. Even if demand increases late this year, it shouldn’t be a problem with the widespread availability of the shots, Thomas said.
“We are currently looking at our capacity and what we expect for demand for third doses ... We think there are going to be a lot more options than there were in January or February of last year,” Thomas said. mfilby@dispatch.com @Maxfilby