COVID-19 Booster Shot Planning Moving Forward In Virginia

VIRGINIA — Federal and state health officials expect to have sufficient vaccine supplies when Americans become eligible to get their third dose of the COVID-19 vaccine this fall.

Dr. Danny Avula, state vaccine coordinator for Virginia, said Thursday, that the scenario for the booster shots will be very different than what public health officials were working with across the United States from last December through March.

Virginia officials are planning for residents who were among the first to receive their second dose of the vaccine in January to become eligible for a third dose on Sept. 20, which would be eight months after their second shots, Avula said on a conference call to discuss the latest vaccine developments.

Studies show that the vaccine begins to lose its effectiveness around the eight-month mark.

Unlike earlier this year, though, people should not have trouble getting access to a vaccine when their eight-month mark arrives.

“We will have enough supply, and whenever people become eligible, they will have access to a vaccine,” he said. “As we start the planning at the state level the capacity numbers are really reassuring.”

Virginia has recruited about 2,700 doctors’ offices and other providers to become Centers for Disease Control and Prevention-approved vaccination sites.

Over the next week, Avula said state officials will be working local health districts to determine if any additional contracted support will be needed to provide the booster shot.

Avula also emphasized that the sense of urgency to get the third vaccine shot will not be as strong as it was earlier this year to get their first two doses.

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“So if it happens at eight months and one week, eight months and three weeks, know that you're going to have a window here — you still have a fair amount of protection,” he said.

Delta Variant Driving Up COVID-19 Cases

State and local health officials are making plans for a third vaccination as the number of COVID-19 cases continues to grow in all health districts across the state, primarily due to the delta variant.

On Friday, the Virginia State Department of Health reported 2,792 new cases of the coronavirus, compared to 2,764 new cases reported on Thursday.

Virginia's seven-day positivity rate among tests conducted stood at 9.1 percent on Friday, a significant increase from the 7.7 percent positivity rate reported by the VDH on Aug. 13.

On Thursday, the Richmond and Henrico Health Districts received notice of a recent death of a child caused by COVID-19. The child was between the ages of 0-9, according to the VDH.

This is the second reported childhood death caused by COVID-19 in Richmond and Henrico and 10th in the state. Getting vaccinated against COVID-19 continues to be the best way to protect children too young to get vaccinated, the VDH said.

In its latest analysis released Friday, researchers at the University of Virginia Biocomplexity Institute said the current scenario shows Virginia heading toward a large surge of coronavirus cases in September. But this scenario could change if there is an increase in the number of people getting their first and second vaccinations and a greater number of people wearing masks.

"Across the nation, the Delta variant is causing a flood of new cases, and severely taxing the healthcare system," the UVA researchers said. "In the Commonwealth, 33 of 35 health districts are now 'surging,' as is every single neighboring state."

Nationwide, hospitalizations are up 14.2 percent from the previous week, and some states are struggling to keep up.

"Florida is reporting that COVID-19 patients are now taking up 55% of their Intensive Care Unit (ICU) beds, Mississippi reports only seven ICU beds left statewide, and Alabama has exceeded its ICU capacity entirely," the UVA researchers said Friday. "Models suggest that Virginia could be on the same path, just a few weeks behind the rest."

With the speed that the delta variant is spreading, COVID-19 vaccines will likely need some assistance to prevent Virginia following the path of these other state, according to the researchers.

"Our best solutions at this point are the tried-and-true preventive measures: mask-usage, social distancing, testing, and self-isolation when sick," they said. "A recent study suggests that mass mask-wearing could reduce transmission rates by 25.8%. In combination, masking and distancing could alter the course of this epidemic."