The 2024-2025 viral season is here, are you and your loved ones updated on all your vaccines? During the Fall and Winter of each year, cases for viral diseases like Influenza and COVID-19 tend to spike. Specifically, we know that the height of infection is usually in December, but the cases still typically begin to increase at the start of Fall.
The CDC released their recommendations for the 2024-2025 season back in June, giving us all a helpful heads-up to plan our vaccinations once they became available. These recommendations apply to everyone 6 months and older, and now that these updated doses have become available, it’s important that we schedule our appointments before cases are sure to increase.
As a matter of fact, many have reported a surge in COVID-19 cases over the end of the summer. Over the past four weeks (since September 7th), the CDC reports an average of 17.1% of Test Positivity across the country; some states have even reported estimates as high as 20%. This surge is related to the one we saw earlier in May from variant KP.2, as the CDC estimates that 52.7% of current COVID-19 cases to be from the KP.3 variant. This newer variant is another descendent of the Omicron variant, like KP.2, and displays an evident increase since July, when KP.3 was only estimated to account for 36% of cases.
Remember, updated booster shots are important because they account for more recent variants that are often better able sneak past the immunity built up in our immune systems by previous vaccinations and infections. If the CDC is estimating that a more recent variant is taking up half (52.7%) of all current cases, that makes updating one’s immunity paramount to having a healthy infection-free season.
As you schedule your COVID-19 Vaccination appointments, consider which option may be right for you. Current mRNA vaccines that have been approved and authorized include the 2024-2025 Formulas for both Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech. An updated formula of the Novavax COVID-19 vaccine is also available, which is a protein subunit vaccine. For a refresher on the difference between these vaccine types, refer to our earlier blog post, “Get to Know the COVID-19 Vaccination Process.”
Influenza vaccines are no different when it comes to how important updating their formulas is. The Flu is a virus just like COVID-19, and is known to change and evolve into new variants. The CDC has confirmed that all flu vaccines for 2024-2025 are trivalent, meaning they are composed of three components intended to account for currently prominent strains of the virus.
If you need help scheduling your vaccination appointment, check with your local pharmacy or try NHCOA’s Resource Center via WhatsApp.
References:
“Influenza (Flu).” The Centers for Disease Control. https://www.cdc.gov/flu/index.htm
“COVID-19 Vaccination Clinical & Professional Resources.” The Centers for Disease Control. https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/covid-19/index.html
“Monitoring Variant Proportions,” COVID Data Tracker. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#variant-proportions
“CDC Recommends Updated 2024-2025 COVID-19 and Flu Vaccines for Fall/Winter Virus Season,” CDC Newsroom. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2024/s-t0627-vaccine-recommendations.html
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