Now’s the ‘perfect time’ to get COVID, flu boosters

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A dessert to share. A bottle of wine for holiday hosts. Maybe one of those Jell-O concoctions that we Midwesterners consider a “salad” for some odd reason.

With just two weekends to go before Christmas, thoughts are understandably focused on upcoming gatherings and preparations for them. When weighing what to bring, it’s also important to consider what should not accompany us — respiratory viruses and other pathogens that easily spread in crowded indoor spaces.

A thoughtful gift for yourself, your family and community looks like this: Ensure that you and your loved ones are up to date on booster shots that protect against severe COVID-19 and influenza. Another infectious disease that Minnesotans should be on guard against this year, especially those who will be around very young children: whooping cough. Cases of this potentially serious but vaccine-preventable disease are at the highest level in the state in more than a decade.

As of last week, “2,324 cases of whooping cough, also called pertussis, were reported by health care facilities, medical labs and schools and child care centers, with the majority in the Twin Cities metro. That’s the highest number reported at this time of year since 2012, when there were 4,144 cases,” the Star Tribune reported on Sunday.

Whooping cough can be particularly severe in infants, according to Jessica Munroe, a vaccine management and improvement unit supervisor for the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH). About half of babies under the age of one who are infected will require hospitalization, she said. Ensuring that you and everyone else around these young ones is up to date on boosters for pertussis is especially important for infants too young to start the vaccine series.

Before this vaccine, “as many as 200,000 children got sick with whooping cough each year in the US and about 9,000 died as a result of the infection,” according to the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases. Sadly, this pathogen continues to cause widespread sickness in areas of the world where vaccines aren’t easily accessible. Declining childhood vaccination rates in the United States heighten the risk here.

In addition to the vulnerable young, family gatherings often include older relatives. That’s important to be aware of because age is a major risk factor for severe COVID and influenza.

“It’s estimated that between 70% and 85% of seasonal flu-related deaths have occurred in people 65 years and older, and between 50% and 70% of seasonal flu-related hospitalizations have occurred among people in this age group,” the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports.

Older adults are also at higher risk of severe COVID complications. “Age is the strongest risk factor for severe COVID-19 outcomes. That risk increases in people who are 50 years and older, with the risk increasing substantially at age 65 and older. Residents of long-term care facilities are also at increased risk of severe outcomes from COVID-19,” according to the MDH. Other risk factors for severe COVID include diabetes, obesity and chronic heart, lung, kidney and liver conditions.

The CDC recommends annual flu shots for “everyone 6 months and older” with rare exceptions. The public health agency also urges that everyone six months and older get the updated 2024-25 COVID booster shot. In late October, recognizing the virus’ risk to seniors, the CDC advised that people age 65 years and older get a second COVID booster six months after their first dose of this year’s updated COVID shot. The recommendation also applies to those who are immunocompromised.

Minnesota is well ahead of the national average when it comes to immunizing seniors against flu and COVID. Nationally, the CDC reports that 29% of those 65 and older have gotten the 2024-25 COVID booster, and about 43% have received this year’s flu shot. In Minnesota, 42% of those 65 and older have gotten this season’s COVID shot, while 54% have received this year’s flu shot. But clearly there’s room for improvement.

One frustrating data point is the COVID booster’s alarmingly low uptake in nursing homes. As of Dec. 4, just 35% of these frail residents nationally are considered up to date with COVID vaccines. Minnesota easily bests that, with 56% of nursing home residents up to date on the latest COVID vaccination. Regionally, North Dakota and South Dakota match Minnesota on this critical metric, while other neighbors come commendably close, with Iowa posting 53% and Wisconsin 48%.

That still leaves too many nursing home residents at risk. But Minnesota and its neighbors are doing far better than Texas, which posted an abysmal 19%. Alaska leads the nation with 63%.

Cost isn’t an excuse to avoid the vaccine. As the MDH notes, Medicare, the federal program that provides health coverage for those 65 and up, covers the flu and COVID vaccines. Commercial insurance typically does as well, reports KFF, a nonpartisan health policy organization. State health officials also recommend that older adults and others with certain risk factors talk to their doctors about two other shots, which aren’t given yearly, that protect against pneumonia and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

The MDH recommends a free online tool for anyone who wants to check their immunization record to see what vaccines are due. It’s called Docket. More information on it and other options to retrieve immunization records is available at tinyurl.com/FindShotRecords.

Fortunately, there’s still time to get vaccinated for the holidays, with the interim between now and Christmas giving the shots and your immune system time to team up and rev up. “It’s never too late to get your COVID and flu shot,” said the MDH’s Munroe. “If you haven’t ... now is the perfect time to do so.”