Pandemic-weary public may resist second booster, experts say
Army veteran Robert Hall waits the recommended 15 minutes to see if he will have any adverse reactions after receiving his second COVID-19 booster shot at Edward Hines Jr. VA Hospital on Friday in Hines, Illinois. Credit: Getty Images/Scott Olson
A second COVID-19 booster shot is now available to certain groups, but experts say they are concerned about whether those who need the added protection will actually take it.
Less than half of the fully vaccinated population in New York has received their first booster shot, federal figures show, and health experts are concerned the pandemic-weary public will show less interest in the second one.
“I don't think there's any doubt that enthusiasm for a second booster is significantly lower and that compliance will be much lower than with the first booster,” said Dr. Bruce Farber, chief of public health and epidemiology at Northwell Health. “Part of it is people are over with COVID in their mind, whether it's present or not.”
Farber said the second booster is vital for the older population and immunocompromised.
“I think people need to accept the fact that if they want to stay well and if they do get COVID, have a mild case, the ongoing boosters are a reality,” he said.
Booster shots are designed to increase protection against COVID-19 once the effectiveness of the original vaccination course has waned. The first booster shots became available last fall, several months after many people received their initial COVID-19 vaccinations.
Last week, the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced they were recommending a second booster shot of the Pfizer BioNTech or Moderna vaccines for certain populations.
According to the New York State Health Department, that recommendation is targeted for adults 50 and older who had received their first booster at least four months ago as well as people 12 and over who are moderately or severely immunocompromised who also received their first booster at least four months ago.
Martine Hackett, director of public health programs at Hofstra University, said people may not be interested in a second booster shot because they are not feeling the same sense of urgency as they did when the number of COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and death rates were very high.
“That’s a good thing that we don’t have high death rates but I think that people are feeling less at risk and that is influencing their behavior,” she said.
On Saturday, the state recorded 3,683 new positive COVID-19 test results out of 125,777 people. The seven-day rolling average of new positive cases was 2.9%. In January, that percentage was double digits as the state dealt with the omicron wave.
“It’s really sort of telling that the initial booster has received so much resistance,” Hackett said. “So when you add on the second booster you’re getting diminishing returns because people are feeling like they are not needing it.”
CDC figures show 45.9% of the fully vaccinated population in Suffolk County has received a booster dose and 42.7% of the fully vaccinated population of Nassau County has received a booster dose.
Farber said he is concerned that more people have not received the first booster, which has shown to provide more protection against COVID-19 than the second booster.
“You may get COVID but it’s unlikely they will be in a hospital with COVID and they will not die of COVID,” he said of the booster. “We are not going to be able to stop these breakthrough cases but we can certainly keep them very mild.”
Hackett said the challenge for public health is finding a way to better communicate the changing science associated with COVID-19. For example, people were told just one year ago that fully vaccinated meant either two doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccines or one dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
“You have to be able to say the virus mutates and there are different challenges that come up and talk about how the vaccines might wane in their effectiveness and communicate those realities,” she said. “No information opens up a vacuum for misinformation.”
Farber said keeping up with vaccinations against the COVID-19 virus is not a lot different from dealing with other chronic medical conditions.
“People take medicines for diabetes, heart disease, chronic pulmonary disease and they are constantly being adjusted,” he said. “So if the price we are going to pay is a booster once a year or twice a year … to me that seems like a relatively small price to pay compared to what can happen.”
Lisa joined Newsday as a staff writer in 2019. She previously worked at amNewYork, the New York Daily News and the Asbury Park Press covering politics, government and general assignment.
