NJ COVID Vaccine Hesitancy Could Fuel The Next Variant: Officials

NEW JERSEY — Joyce Fisher of Westville said she thought she had the omicron variant earlier this year.

"I never tested as nearly all my extended family was ill and needed my supply of test kits," she told Patch. "All I had was a sinus headache, runny nose and swollen glands in my neck with a slight fever."

Although she received two doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine last May, she said her fear of side effects keeps her from getting a booster. She pointed the finger of blame at pharmaceutical companies, present administration, and social media.

“I no longer trust their claims about the safety and efficacy of this medication,” Fisher explained. “At the very least, a true vaccine prevents transmission of the targeted disease; none of these [vaccines] ever did that nor did they claim to do so.

Roger L. Boyell of Moorestown called the COVID-19 vaccination and booster process “a big scam.”

“If it was as advertised, you would not need boosters,” he said in an interview.

According to the Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation, a Washington-state-based population health research organization, Boyell is one of about 25 percent of New Jersey residents who have yet to receive at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.

People such as Fisher, Boyell and other non-COVID-19 vaccine recipients may be setting New Jersey and the rest of the country up for future COVID-19 variants, according to Jennifer Caudle, DO, an associate professor at Rowan University's School of Osteopathic Medicine.

"The more that the virus continues to spread in the community, the more the likelihood that we will have other variants,” she told Patch. "Getting fully vaccinated, and then getting boosted is one of our most important weapons against COVID in this pandemic. "It's really not something that we should be seeing as optional, we really should be getting the full series."

Mark J. Condoluci, DO, an infectious disease specialist at Jefferson Health of New Jersey, agreed that COVID-19 vaccination is the best way people can protect themselves against COVID-19.

“It's better to be protected, should there be any variants may arise and ultimately act in the factors similarly to delta or omicron, which were exceptional as it relates to their ability to spread and infect others,” he said. “The best way of avoiding severe illness is good preparation here. Typically, that comes back to your vaccination status and overall health.”

Changing the minds of people who are vaccine-hesitant and apathetic may depend on who these people get their information from, according to

"For those folks, what rings true time and time again, is who was doing that messaging," he said in an interview. "A large amount of that messaging … especially for us, here in South Jersey, is about being able to connect with the population that we serve, and ultimately to show them how they may benefit from vaccination series and/or the booster."

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