While many are awaiting the approaching season of pumpkin lattes and cozy sweaters, something else is on its way: updated COVID-19 vaccines.
This year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that individuals six months and older receive a COVID-19 and a flu vaccine to protect against these illnesses and reduce their spread within communities.
According to the National Wastewater Surveillance System (NWSS) found on the CDC webpage, “Wastewater (sewage) can be tested to detect traces of infectious diseases circulating in a community, even if people don’t have symptoms. You can use these data as an early warning that levels of infections may be increasing or decreasing in your community.”
The CDC reports nationally that the wastewater viral activity level for COVID-19 is “currently very high.”
The approval of updated COVID-19 vaccines targeting more recent strains of the virus by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is imminent, possibly as early as next week, reported CNN. The push to implement an updated vaccine is ahead of last year’s schedule, which the FDA approved on September 11, 2023.
CNN’s sources, who opted to remain anonymous because the timing details are not public, have indicated that the agency will likely authorize updated mRNA vaccines from Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech intended to address a variant of the virus referred to as KP.2.
“In 2023, more than 916,300 people were hospitalized due to COVID-19 and more than 75,500 people died from COVID-19. During the 2023-2024 flu season, more than 44,900 people are estimated to have died from flu complications,” stated the CDC newsroom.
The nation is already confronting a higher summer surge of COVID-19 than it has in the past two years, reported CNN.
“Our top recommendation for protecting yourself and your loved ones from respiratory illness is to get vaccinated,” said Mandy Cohen, M.D., M.P.H., CDC director. “Make a plan now for you and your family to get both updated flu and COVID vaccines this fall, ahead of the respiratory virus season.”
Despite what the reports indicate, there has also been strong opposition to the COVID-19 vaccines, alleging everything from causing seizures in toddlers to lingering adverse side effects and death, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.