'This Pandemic Still Has Legs': COVID-19 Expert Q&A

Nov. 5, 2021 -- With truthful overmuch COVID-19 quality breaking this week, including the authorization of vaccinations for children ages 5 to 11 and a Jan. 4 national mandate for workers astatine immoderate institution that employs astatine slightest 100 radical to beryllium vaccinated oregon get tested weekly, we wanted to beryllium down with Michael T. Osterholm, PhD, manager of the University of Minnesota’s Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy, to sermon the pressing COVID-19 issues we’re facing close now.

WebMD: Now that kids ages 5 to 11 are eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine, what inactive concerns you?

Osterholm: Right now, you person a concern wherever astir a 3rd of parents are indicating they volition get their kids vaccinated arsenic soon arsenic possible. Then determination are a 3rd of parents saying, “Maybe, I volition hold and see,” and the last 3rd who are saying, “No way.” Now we request to spot however galore of that mediate radical of parents volition get their kids vaccinated. That could find what the vacation play volition look like.

WebMD: How bash you consciousness astir the Biden administration’s mandate for workers to get vaccinated oregon get tested play by Jan. 4?

Osterholm: A batch of radical don’t recognize that ongoing transmission volition support occurring successful this country. If you look astatine what we’re seeing successful the Southwest, you tin spot what’s happening -- lawsuit numbers are expanding quickly. The bottommost enactment is that we person 65 to 70 cardinal radical near to get infected. That’s the situation we have. Look astatine the Four Corners. In those 4 states [Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, and Colorado], lawsuit numbers are going mode up, and Colorado’s politician conscionable announced they’re deferring elective procedures. All of this sets the signifier for wherefore this mandate is truthful important.

WebMD: Will we ever determination from pandemic to endemic?

Osterholm: In my podcast, I spell into the challenges of vaccines. One happening I effort to enactment guardant is that the euphoria we had astir a twelvemonth agone erstwhile the vaccines became disposable was real. At the time, information were showing 99% extortion against illness, hospitalization, and death. That was earlier we understood what would that look similar 6 to 8 months later. Just adhd up the contented of variants arsenic good arsenic the fig of radical not protected. Then look astatine the radical with grounds of protection, and we don’t cognize however agelong and however good it volition last. This pandemic inactive has legs, and it’s wherefore we person to person a immense dose of humility astir this virus.

WebMD: When it comes to the booster, immoderate radical are getting antibody investigating to assistance determine if they request one. Good idea?

Osterholm: Under nary information should you usage antibody testing arsenic a gauge of whether oregon not you request a booster. We don’t cognize what antibody studies mean. Just due to the fact that you marque an antibody astatine a higher level, we don’t cognize yet however this connects to protection. Until we person immoderate consciousness of correlative factors, specified arsenic however overmuch bash T cells play a relation and what does extortion mean and studies wherever we tin correlate immune effect and antithetic kinds of antibodies, you can’t usage antibody investigating arsenic a crushed to get the booster -- oregon not.

WebMD: How are you feeling close present astir wherever we are successful this pandemic?

Osterholm: I deliberation a batch about: How overmuch bash we know? How overmuch did we deliberation we knew? For example, the vaccines are singular but they’re not perfect. That’s a cardinal message.

Also, if this was emblematic vaccine, we would person spent 5 to 6 years studying and looking astatine semipermanent immunity. We would person gone into the support process with an exhaustive dossier.

We couldn’t bash this due to the fact that we were successful a pandemic, truthful erstwhile we established the information of the vaccines, we were successful a concern wherever our extremity was to survey however to champion usage them, including what the doses should beryllium and however galore doses a idiosyncratic should receive.

We’re each learning that and trying to recognize this. And this is important: This isn’t indecision oregon incomplete information. We’re learning. It’s an evolving science. The happening I’m learning is to person an adjacent bigger dose of humility astir this virus.