Vaccines & Boosters 'Critically Important' Against New COVID-19 Variant, Hopkins Epidemiologist Says
BALTIMORE (WJZ) – Health experts expect a rise in COVID-19 cases in the United States as the B.A. 2 variant is credited with driving new surges in China and Europe.
Dr. Keri Althoff, an epidemiologist with the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, said with cases anticipated to increase domestically, it is "critically important" that Marylanders are vaccinated and boosted against COVID-19.
"That's the name of the game," Dr. Altoff said. "I know everyone is tired, I'm right there with you. But we have been successful only to the extent that we've been flexible, able to scale up and peel back mitigation strategies as needed."
Public health officials are closely monitoring the variant while COVID case rates and hospitalizations have plummeted across the country. New COVID infections in Maryland and nationwide are at their lowest levels since July.
"We recognize we have a pretty good bubble of protection right now in the United States, but we also know that will wane with time," Althoff said. "But also remember we still have a lot of people we care about in our communities who are still at a heightened risk."
Pfizer and Moderna have requested emergency use authorization for another booster dose of their respective vaccines. The Food and Drug Administration is scheduled to meet next month.
"We're not necessarily looking for protection against infection," Dr. Althoff said. "We're looking for protection against hospitalization and death."
