After weeks of chaos for Georgia patients trying to get the new COVID-19 vaccine, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention leadership has finalized its recommendations.
It should be much easier now for Georgia adults to find a pharmacist or doctor willing to give the shot.
Mehul Suthar just got his. Suthar, a professor at Emory University’s School of Medicine, has new research showing immunity can last longer from continuing to get COVID boosters.
“The data is, to me, very convincing that there are reductions in ER visits, urgent care visits, hospitalizations and deaths by continuing to stay updated with your vaccines,” Suthar said.
Now is the season to do it, in order to be prepared for holiday gatherings and crammed airports. Immunity takes a couple of weeks to ramp up after the shot.
But there still may be hoops to jump through. Here are some specifics.
The official recommendation
Acting Director Jim O’Neill announced this week that CDC recommends “individual‑based decision making” for COVID-19 vaccines, for those above 6 months of age. CDC also defined that as “shared clinical decision making.”
That means a discussion with your health care provider about the risks and benefits — every medication has both.
People over 65 are at most risk of severe outcomes from COVID infection, the CDC emphasized, and they may need two boosters over the year, not just one.
There is extra reason to get the COVID vaccine if you have an underlying condition giving you heightened risk of a severe outcome from COVID. Those underlying conditions have a huge range, from cancer to “physical inactivity.”
The CDC has the list at this link.
Where to go
CVS, Walgreens and the Georgia Department of Public Health all told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution this week that they were now providing the COVID-19 vaccine without a prescription.
“Following the CDC’s adoption of (the CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices) recommendations, we are able to offer the updated COVID-19 vaccines to patients nationwide,” CVS spokesperson Shannon Dillon said in an email. “Prescriptions from outside prescribers are not required in any states.”
Guidance had been murky in recent weeks under Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy. Even when Kennedy said in a Congressional hearing that anyone could get the COVID vaccine, his department’s skeptical comments led many health workers to halt vaccinations without a prescription.
Georgia DPH supplies vaccines to all counties’ local public health departments, too. That’s especially useful for low-income families without insurance who may need free vaccines.
DPH officials emphasized that they may run out before getting resupplied, and encouraged people to call a local health department before heading out to make sure they have it in stock.
Kids and COVID Vaccines
Pediatricians also now are freed to give federally funded vaccines under the Vaccines for Children program.
Kids under 6 months old have never been eligible to get the COVID-19 vaccine. That’s why it’s important for pregnant women to get the vaccine in most cases, to protect both themselves and their baby, according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. In the Delta pandemic wave, there was a higher rate of stillbirths for babies of women who had COVID-19.
Kids may need different formulations, though, depending on their age: smaller dosage or different ways of giving it. Fewer facilities stock those special formulations. So even if a pharmacist or doctor is willing to give a child vaccine in theory, parents still need to call around to see if they actually have a supply in stock for their child’s age.
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