A nurse and a doctor who work in emergency medicine in Bloomington are urging people to get vaccinated as hospital staff are dealing with pandemic fatigue and a worker shortage while patient numbers are rising.
People are acting like COVID is over ... and its not, said Dr. Robert Adams, IU Health Southern Indiana Physicians Emergency Medicine provider.
Katy Howe, a registered nurse and director of emergency and trauma services at IU Health, said, Just when we think weve made it through another surge (and theres) a glimmer of hope ... then it hits again.
Adams and Howe are adding their voices to a growing chorus of health care workers who are sounding the alarm about rising hospitalizations from motor vehicle accidents, the flu and COVID-19 amid increasing health care worker burnout and a general labor shortage.
The Indiana Hospital Association, Indiana State Medical Association and Indiana State Nurses Association this week released a joint statement to urge people to get their COVID and flu shots to relieve pressures bearing down on health care workers.
Right now, theres not a lot of capacity in the system, IHA President Brian Tabor told The Herald-Times.
COVID-19 hospitalizations have risen by two-thirds in the past three weeks and are nearing 75% of the pandemic peak the state experienced last November, he said.
Were very concerned, Tabor said.
The rising case numbers have pushed all but seven of Indianas 92 counties into the orange or red advisory, the two most serious classifications.
Since the pandemic began, the state has counted more than 1.1 million COVID-19 cases, and more than 17,000 Hoosiers have died from the disease. Nearly 89% of those who have died were older than 60. Most have underlying health conditions. The vast majority of people who become infected recover.
While hospitalizations have risen again recently, deaths, so far, have not ticked up, but they are a lagging indicator, meaning that cases rise first, then hospitalizations, then deaths.
Data provided by the Indiana State Health Department show sharply higher risks of infection and death among people who are unvaccinated.
According to the ISDH:
Adams, who works in emergency rooms including in Bloomington, said more than 90% of the COVID patients at IU Health in southern Indiana are unvaccinated.
The states low vaccination rate is putting an enormous strain on the health care system, he said.
The rising number of COVID-19 cases also has affected health care workers themselves.
Im struggling to keep my staff healthy, Adams said.
While his co-workers vaccinations will, with a high degree of certainty, prevent severe disease, they do still have to isolate sometimesand cannot work, tighteningworkforce constraints that already existed before the pandemic.A 2018 study projected a national shortage of registered nurses that would exceed 500,000 by 2030.
Tabor said the pandemic has accelerated the speed and increased the magnitude of some pre-pandemic trends, including more retirements or people leaving hospitals to work in less frantic environments. Some providers struggled even before the pandemic to find short-term solutions to those long-term dynamics, and, Tabor said, doing so while dealing with surges of patients during a pandemic is an even greater challenge.
More: With Bloomington Hospital moving Sunday, COVID antibody treatment appointments are limited
Howe said hospital employees also are seeing more verbal and physical assaults on staff, which is causing more people than normal to ask questions including, Is this what I signed up for?
Given the nursing shortage, she said, nurses can earn good wages outside emergency rooms, which is worsening the staffing situation in hospitals. And health care providers have fewer opportunities to replace departing employees with graduates from nursing programs because some of them also saw pandemic-induced curbs.
Howe said IU Health hospitals usually welcome some new graduates in December.
We just havent had any, she said. Theyre just not there.
Tabor said the general labor shortage also is reducing hospital capacity. Beyond doctors and nurses, hospitals employ lots of people who provide critical services, including workers who prepare hospital rooms for the next patient or surgery.
Adams said giving health care workers some much-needed rest, including emotional rest, is becoming ever more difficult.
Unfortunately it looks like theres no end in sight, he said.
While COVID cases remain below their peak, Adams and Howe said hospitals are seeing more patients who have sustained traumatic injuries simply from sending more time outside their homes: More injuries from motor vehicle traffic, sports and everyday slips and falls.
In addition, the health care professionals said they are seeing more patients who had to or chose to delay care during prior COVID surges.
Tabor said in some cases, the delays have meant the patients condition has deteriorated, requiring more resources and longer stays, and again reducing hospital capacity.
And Adams said while many people wore masks a year ago, few people are doing so today, which increases the prevalence of other communicable diseases, such as the flu.
This year already weve seen a ton of flu, mostly coming from the IU student population, he said.
Tabor said given the staffing shortages, hospitals have few options outside of withdrawing employees from some areas to shift them toward emergency care. Theyre making those adjustments knowing full well they are likely increasing their workload down the line.
Its going to be a challenge to manage through the next few months, he said.
While the situation in Indiana isnt as dire as in Europe the German military is flying some COVID patients from at-capacity hospitals in the southern city of Munich to the northern city of Hamburg Tabor said National Guard personnel have filled in some shifts in Indiana hospitals to allow people to catch their breath.
Were not, at this point, overwhelmed the same way that Europe is, but I am concerned where this next wave ... leads us, he said.
Adams, Howe and Tabor all said the best thing people can do to reduce pressure on the health system is to get vaccinated. That means flu shots and initial, second and booster shots for COVID.
Thats the best thing you can do to help that tired nurse, that frustrated doctor, Tabor said.
Adams urged people to get their information about vaccines from reputable sources. He said the chances of developing COVID-19 and having a significant problem are much higher than having a significant problem from the vaccinations. Across the globe, nearly 8 billion shots of the vaccines have been given.
Weve never had a safer medication, Adams said.
Howe asked that when people gather for the holidays, they avoid setting up a buffet line or, if they do, to have only one person plate the food. She said she wants people to connect because its important for their mental health, but people who are unvaccinated must remain careful, keep their distance and wear masks.
She also urged people to make sure they seek care outside of hospitals if possible to prevent overwhelming the system. People who have been dealing with a chronic problem can probably bypass the emergency room and set up an appointment with their primary care doctor. If people have mild symptoms and their primary care doctor is busy, they may seek help at an urgent care facility. Of course, she said, if people suffer emergencies a serious injury, chest pain, a stroke they should not hesitate to call 911 to get to the ER.
When you have that emergency, well be here for you, she said.
Boris Ladwig is the city government reporter for The Herald-Times. Contact him at bladwig@heraldt.com.
BETHESDA, Md. (AP) With rising numbers of COVID-19 cases predicted this winter, President Joe Biden on Thursday appealed for Americans to get their boosters and get behind his plan to tackle the new omicron variant through wider availability of vaccines and shots, but without new major restrictions on daily life.
Biden wants to require private insurers to cover the cost of at-home COVID-19 tests and he is tightening testing requirements for people entering the United States, regardless of their vaccination status. While some other countries are closing their borders or reinstituting lockdowns, the president said he would not at this time impose additional clampdowns beyond his recommendation that Americans wear masks indoors in public settings.
Experts say the COVID-19 cases will continue to rise in the weeks ahead this winter, so we need to be ready, Biden said during a visit to the National Institutes of Health in suburban Maryland after a briefing with scientific advisers.
He said his new strategy doesnt include shutdowns and lockdowns, and he hoped for bipartisan backing.
My plan Im announcing today pulls no punches in the fight against COVID-19, and its a plan that I think should unite us, he Biden said.
Legal challenges have held up Bidens vaccination-or-testing requirement for workers at larger employers, and thats led the president to urge businesses to impose their own mandates so companies can stay open without outbreaks.
His administration has come to view widespread adoption of booster shots as its most effective tool for combating COVID-19 this winter. Medical experts say boosters provide enhanced and more enduring protection, including against new variants.
Much remains unknown about the omicron variant, such as whether it is more contagious, makes people more seriously ill and can thwart the vaccines. Officials said Thursday that a second case of the variant had been confirmed in the United States.
About 100 million Americans are eligible for boosters under current U.S. policy, with more becoming eligible every day. Officials believe that persuading the vaccinated to get another dose will be easier than vaccinating the roughly 43 million adult Americans who havent gotten a shot.
Go get your booster now, Biden said.
Seniors are in the population most vulnerable to the virus, and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will send a notice to all 63 million Medicare beneficiaries encouraging them to get booster doses, the White House said. The AARP will work with the administration on education campaigns for seniors.
So far about 42 million Americans, about half of them seniors, have received a booster dose. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention this week broadened its booster dose recommendation to cover all Americans at least age 18, starting six months after their second dose of the mRNA vaccines from Pfizer or Moderna.
Biden said the CDC is developing new guidance for schools in an effort to reduce or eliminate current quarantine requirements for those not fully vaccinated and exposed to the virus. That could include test-to-stay policies, in which those considered close contacts can continue to go to school but wear masks and undergo serial testing, in an effort to minimize learning loss and disruption.
The rule that private insurers cover at-home testing is being drafted, and details remain to be worked out, officials said.
People insured by Medicare and Medicaid would not be eligible, but the White House said as many as 150 million people with private insurance would see easier and cheaper access to the at-home tests. The administration said it is making 50 million COVID-19 tests free for older people and other vulnerable groups for pickup at senior centers and community sites.
Beginning next week, Biden said, all travelers to the U.S., regardless of nationality or vaccination status, will need to provide proof of a negative COVID-19 test within one day of boarding flights. That compares with three days now for those who have been vaccinated. The White House has shelved tougher options such as requiring post-arrival testing or requiring quarantines upon arrival in the U.S.
The White House has not yet acted to require domestic U.S. travelers to be vaccinated or get tested. Officials believe such a requirement would be mired in litigation.
We base our decisions on the advice of the health and medical experts, whats going to be most effective and what we can implement, press secretary Jen Psaki said Thursday.
Biden is extending his directive requiring masks on airplanes and other public transit, which had been set to expire in January, through at least the middle of March, the White House said.
The administration is informing states that it has more than 60 teams available to help them or their municipalities address surges in cases and public health shortages heading into the winter.
Currently, the most effective treatments available for Covid in the U.S. are monoclonal antibody drugs, which bind to the virus and stop it from infecting cells. But these treatments are typically administered intravenously by health care workers. This can pose logistical challenges both for hospitals, many of which are overburdened and short-staffed, and for patients, who may not be able to get to clinics or infusion sites.
The new antivirals are different. You could potentially pick up your prescription and go home, said Dr. Michelle Barron, the senior medical director of infection prevention and control for UCHealth, a health care system in Colorado.
The Merck and Pfizer treatments, which involve taking 30 or 40 pills over the course of five days, should be given early in the course of infection, while the virus is replicating quickly.
In clinical trials, which enrolled only unvaccinated people at high risk for serious disease, Mercks regimen reduced the risk of hospitalization and death by about 30 percent when given within the first five days of symptoms, while Pfizers cut those risks by 89 percent when given within the first three days of symptoms.
Replicating these results in the real world will require people to act swiftly, perhaps at the first sign of the sniffle.
It starts with the public education such that when people start to have mild symptoms, early in the course of their illness, they think, This might be Covid-19, and I should get a test, said Alyssa Bilinski, an expert on public health policy at Brown University. Then, of course, we have to have access to tests that have to ideally be affordable. Then people need to get their test results back and they need to get them back quickly.
She added, All of this needs to happen within three to five days.
It is not yet clear whether officials will require patients to take a certain kind of Covid test before the drugs are prescribed. In Britain, which already authorized the Merck pill, regulators specified only a positive SARS-COV-2 diagnostic test.
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Fewer people got the COVID-19 vaccine in both Alachua County and Florida last week as the first confirmed cases of the new omicron variant were found in the U.S.
Locally, new cases decreased, but the state as a whole saw a growing number of reportedinfections.
Last week's numbers: Alachua County passes 40,000 cumulative COVID-19 cases
How would you spend these dollars?: Alachua County Public Schools ask community how COVID-19 funds should be spent
COVID-19 vaccines in local schools: Alachua County Public Schools prepares to vaccinate children ages 5-11
Here's a look at the pandemic's latest data around the county and state:
According to Friday's COVID-19 Weekly Situation Reportfrom FDOH, Alachua County had 96new COVID-19 cases between Nov. 26 and Dec. 2, the lowest since early July.
The county's new case positivity rate also decreased, falling below 2% for the first time since the state switched to weekly instead of daily reports in June.
Meanwhile, the number of people vaccinated dropped 40%from the previous seven days' count of1,567 to 940, the lowest since early November.
The county now has a total of172,353people vaccinated, accounting for about 67% of the vaccine-eligible population those ages 5and up and63% of the whole population.
Alachua County alsohas a new total of40,160 cumulative cases, according to the report. At least 452of them are variant of concern (VOC) cases confirmed by FDOH in apublic records request placed by lawyers for Gannett, the company that owns The Sun.
The latest variant report shared with The Sun contains data through Nov. 18, before the omicron variant was first reported to the World Health Organization,and showed that 362 about 80%of Alachua County's identified VOC cases were caused by the deltaB.1.617.2variant.
The county has had threedelta variant deaths, the report stated, including two white men, aged27 and 48, and a 93-year-old white woman.
FDOH does not publicly report COVID-19 deaths by county anymore and has not since switching to the weekly instead of daily reports in early June. However, a federal document called the COVID-19 Community Profile Reportpublished Thursdayshowed that Alachua County had 536cumulative COVID-19 deaths.
The county COVID-19 dashboard showed 31COVID-19-positive adult inpatients between local hospitals on Friday, including sevenin intensive care and twoon ventilators. The total more than doubled the 13 patients listed for Nov. 26.
As of Sunday, theAlachua County Public Schools COVID-19 dashboardreported24student and sixstaff COVID-19 cases forNovember. Another 17students were listed in quarantine.
The University of Florida reported seven new COVID-19 cases between Nov. 26 and Dec. 2, the FDOH weekly report timeline. Itsdashboardlisted13,450total COVID-19 cases between March 18, 2020, and Sunday, including 2,502 employee cases and8,685 student cases. It also showed 91 UF affiliates currently in isolation or quarantine as of Sunday, including 15employees and 57students.
Heres a breakdown of new cases in surrounding counties:
The number of new COVID-19 cases in thestate of Florida rose last week from9,663to 10,892, according to FDOH'sFriday report.
In the same time period, vaccinations dropped by a few thousand people to 101,032.About 69% of Florida's eligible population andover 65% of its total population has now been vaccinated.
Throughout the state, the report showed, senior Floridians ages 65 and older madeupthe most vaccinatedage group, at 89%,while young Floridians ages 5-11, who just recently became eligible for vaccination, made up one of the lowest vaccinated groups at 9%.
Meanwhile,the state added 61,548 moreCOVID-19 deaths to its cumulative total for61,701 throughout the pandemic.
According to the latest variant of concerndata available to The Sun, which includes data through Nov. 18,about 74% of Florida's reported 48,277VOC cases are from the delta COVID-19 strain. Around2% of those have resulted in hospitalization, and 1.4% have died.
The 490delta variant deaths in the state includeone 9-year-old girl,199women and 290men ranging in age from 23-99 years old. Five had traveled, and 272were hospitalized.Of the reported variant deaths 350 were white, 80were Black and 126were Hispanic.
EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) A new analysis published in The American Journal of Cardiology has revealed a possible link between Covid-19 vaccines and an elevated risk of Myopericarditis, which is an inflammation of the heart muscle.
According to CDC data about 2,300 reports of myocarditis occurred from 1990 to 2020. Of those, nearly 2,000 were reported in 2021 in people who received the Covid-19 vaccine.
After tracking data from about 200,000 adults the group was able to identify cases of the disease that came after being vaccinated but said more research needs to be done.
The authors said their work reaffirms the apparent increase in the diagnosis of myopericardttis in men most often between the ages of 25 to 44 who received the Covid-19 vaccination.
Most cases of Myocarditis with clinical symptoms resolved with-in six days, according to the analysis.
For local and breaking news, sports, weather alerts, video and more, download the FREE KTSM 9 News App from theApple App Storeor theGoogle Play Store.
This Tuesday, three McDonald's locations in the Triad will host a free COVID-19 vaccination clinic and testing for anyone who needs it. The event is in partnership with NC Counts.It will take place Dec. 7 from 1:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. at the following locations:-7609 Albert Pick Rd, Greensboro, NC 27409-1400 Heartland Dr., Kernersville, NC 27284- 1480 Jag Branch Blvd., Kernersville NC 27284Vaccines will come at no cost, no insurance or ID is required, and no appointments are needed.Pfizer BioNTech, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines will be available, including the Pfizer vaccine for ages 12 and up. Those who receive a vaccine will be eligible for a free order of medium McDonald's French Fries at these restaurant locations that day.First-time vaccine recipients are eligible to receive a cash gift card."Partnering with NC Counts on this important program for our community is a great way for McDonald's to support the health of our residents and employees alike. We can't think of a better way to get vaccinated than to enjoy it with free fries from McDonald's," said Ryan Lang, McDonald's Owner/Operator of all three locations.
This Tuesday, three McDonald's locations in the Triad will host a free COVID-19 vaccination clinic and testing for anyone who needs it.
The event is in partnership with NC Counts.
It will take place Dec. 7 from 1:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. at the following locations:
-7609 Albert Pick Rd, Greensboro, NC 27409
-1400 Heartland Dr., Kernersville, NC 27284
- 1480 Jag Branch Blvd., Kernersville NC 27284
Vaccines will come at no cost, no insurance or ID is required, and no appointments are needed.
Pfizer BioNTech, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines will be available, including the Pfizer vaccine for ages 12 and up.
Those who receive a vaccine will be eligible for a free order of medium McDonald's French Fries at these restaurant locations that day.
First-time vaccine recipients are eligible to receive a cash gift card.
"Partnering with NC Counts on this important program for our community is a great way for McDonald's to support the health of our residents and employees alike. We can't think of a better way to get vaccinated than to enjoy it with free fries from McDonald's," said Ryan Lang, McDonald's Owner/Operator of all three locations.
As the Omicron variant of the coronavirus continues to spread throughout the world, one major question is how well the COVID-19 vaccines will hold up against it?
Currently, we dont have an answer to this. But over the next few weeks, scientists should start releasing data from lab experiments and real-world studies.
These results will give us a better picture of whether Omicron can circumvent vaccine protection and if we will need to update our vaccines to fight this variant.
However, the data wont all be released all at once and much of the initial data will be from preprint studies or company press releases so expect the picture about Omicron to come into focus slowly.
With Omicron, there are already signs that people whove already had a coronavirus infection may more easily develop reinfection.
South African researchers reported on Wednesday that real-world data from the country suggests the variant has a substantial ability to evade immunity from prior infection.
This kind of immune escape was not seen with the Beta and Delta variants during the countrys earlier surges.
However, South African researchers did not have information on the vaccination status of people with the Omicron variant, which limits what they can tell about the effectiveness of the vaccines.
We therefore cannot make any assessment of whether Omicron also evades vaccine-derived immunity, study author Juliet Pulliam, PhD, who directs the South African Centre for Excellence in Epidemiological Modelling and Analysis at Stellenbosch University, said on Twitter.
The results were published on the preprint server medRxiv, so the study has not yet been peer reviewed.
This is just one study, so it may not offer a complete picture of Omicrons behavior.
Scientists will also look at the spread of the variant in other countries, which have different vaccination rates and public health measures in place.
In addition, they will try to control for other factors that can increase a persons chance of acquiring or developing severe illness, such as employment, other medical conditions, and living situation.
And they will look at which vaccines people received, whether they were fully vaccinated, if they received a booster, and how long it was since their last dose.
These studies will take time.
It will take even longer to see if there is an increase in hospitalizations and deaths due to Omicron, as these lag behind cases by several weeks.
While both vaccination and infection can lead to immunity against the coronavirus, infection carries a risk of severe illness.
In the United States, people who are unvaccinated are 14 times more likely to die of COVID-19, compared with people who are fully vaccinated, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Some research also shows that the immune response from coronavirus infection varies greatly among people.
And, like the antibody protection offered by vaccines, infection-acquired immunity wanes over time.
In addition to real-world studies, scientists will test how well antibodies in the blood of people whove been vaccinated can fend off Omicron.
These tests are done in a laboratory. In particular, scientists look at the neutralizing activity of the antibodies against the variant.
Neutralizing antibodies can tightly bind to the virus and effectively neutralize it, such as by preventing it from infecting cells.
If the neutralizing activity drops too low in the face of Omicron, this could indicate that the vaccines are less effective against this variant.
The vaccines approved in the United States target the spike protein of the coronavirus. Omicron has dozens of mutations, with as many as 32 in its spike protein.
We already know about some of these mutations because they have been identified in previous variants.
We have some clues that we may have some reduced efficacy of vaccines [against Omicron]. But we dont have that information yet, Maria Van Kerkhove, PhD, World Health Organization technical lead on COVID-19, said Friday in a public briefing.
It will take a week or two or three to get that [information]. We need scientists to have a little bit more time before we have that answer.
One challenge with testing the level of neutralizing antibodies is figuring out what it means for the real world. Theres not a clear point at which the antibody level drops from good to bad.
Of course, a bigger drop in neutralizing antibodies is worse.
But how far does the level have to fall for a persons risk of infection to increase by a certain amount? Or for their risk of severe illness to become worrisome?
Scientists are working to figure out the answers to these questions, not just for Omicron, but also for Delta.
Even if there is a drop in neutralizing activity against Omicron, the immune system has other ways to protect against the coronavirus.
After vaccination, people also generate other types of antibodies, as well as B cells and T cells. These other layers can kick in even with a drop in neutralizing antibodies.
Scientists will measure the level of T cells and antibody-generating B cells in people who have been vaccinated, looking for ones that target Omicron effectively. These studies, though, are more complicated and can take longer to carry out.
Many experts believe that people who are fully vaccinated will still be well-protected against severe illness caused by Omicron, even if theyre more likely to develop an infection or reinfection than with earlier variants.
A lot of those mutations [found in Omicron] are associated with immune escape. But I think its still very possible that the vaccines will hold up against severe disease, even with those mutations, Dr. Carlos del Rio, a professor of medicine at Emory University School of Medicine, said Thursday in a media briefing of the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA).
At this point in time, we need to follow the science and well get more information in the next couple of weeks.
Its also too early to know yet if we will need an Omicron-specific vaccine or booster.
Vaccine makers reportedly say they can develop a new vaccine within months, but they may wait to see how much of a problem Omicron becomes before rolling them out.
The Beta variant showed signs that it could overcome some of the protection offered by vaccines, but the variant didnt spread much beyond South Africa, where it was first detected.
Also, Delta is still the predominant variant in the United States and many other parts of the world, and is driving an increase in cases and hospitalizations in some areas.
Probably the most important thing for people to do is to make sure that they get their COVID vaccine, because we know thats protective against Delta, said Dr. Ashley Lipps, an infectious disease expert at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center.
Research also suggests that boosters of the current vaccine should help people better fend off Omicron, even if theres a drop in the level of neutralizing antibodies.
Theres every reason to believe, as we talk about boosters, when you get a level [of antibodies] high enough, that you are going to get at least some degree of cross-protection [against Omicron], particularly against severe disease, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the countrys top infectious disease official, said at a briefing this week.
Experts also emphasize that we already have other tools that have worked against all the previous versions of the coronavirus: face masks, better ventilation indoors, physical distancing, testing, and contact tracing.
Weve heard these things so many times, but they really do work, Dr. Julie Vaishampayan, public health officer for Stanislaus County, California, said at the IDSA briefing.
What happened
COVID-19 vaccine stocks are having a terrible week, and developers whose vaccines have yet to gain approval in the all-important U.S. market are having an especially hard time.
For example, Inovio Pharmaceuticals ( INO -6.66% ) stock was down by 14% so far this week as of 2:03 p.m. ET Friday, while Novavax ( NVAX -0.92% ) and Dynavax Technologies ( DVAX -10.41% ) were each down by more than 20%, according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence. All three of these laggards in the coronavirus vaccine race are getting crushed because of concerns about the omicron variant.
Image source: Getty Images.
Specifically, Moderna CEO Stphane Bancel said earlier this week that vaccines designed for the original iteration of COVID-19 may not provide adequate immune protection against the omicron variant. While that hypothesis has yet to be fully vetted in clinical studies, it would spell disaster for second-tier vaccine companies like Inovio, Dynavax, and Novavax.
After all, Inovio's COVID-19 vaccine candidate, INO-4800, was only recently cleared for a phase 3 trial in the United States. As a result, it probably won't be market-ready until the second half of 2022. By that time, the omicron variant -- or perhaps another variant yet to evolve -- may have rendered first-generation COVID-19 vaccines obsolete. That being said, Inovio did recently announce that it is evaluating INO-4800 against omicron, which may turn out to be a big positive for the DNA-based vaccine-maker, once everything is said and done.
Dynavax has licensed out its Cpg 1018 adjuvant -- a component that boosts the immune response generated by vaccines -- to several vaccine developers. But those Dynavax-associated first-generation vaccines, too, might not adequately protect against the highly mutated omicron variant. Only time will tell.
Novavax recently updated investors about this potential risk, and said that it is hard at work developing an omicron-specific version of its recombinant nanoparticle protein-based vaccine. This effort, however, is expected to take several months to complete, which might be too slow to effectively stem the spread of this particular variant.
Are Inovio, Dynavax, and/or Novavax worth buying on this sharp pullback? Of the three, Dynavax and Novavax come across as the most compelling buys. Both are set to generate significant revenue streams from their coronavirus vaccine products over the next 12 months, despite the emergence of the omicron variant. Moreover, we still don't know how well or poorly first-generation COVID-19 vaccines will fare against this variant. As such, bargain hunters who are comfortable with risk might want to consider buying shares of these two beaten-down biotech stocks soon.
This article represents the opinion of the writer, who may disagree with the official recommendation position of a Motley Fool premium advisory service. Were motley! Questioning an investing thesis even one of our own helps us all think critically about investing and make decisions that help us become smarter, happier, and richer.
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. - Families will have the opportunity to tour the Virginia Living Museum for free this Sunday by receiving a vaccination shot or enrolling in a healthcare plan.
Celebrate Healthcare is hosting free COVID-19 vaccine clinics and health insurance marketplace enrollment events at local museums.
Participants must bring a friend or child ages 5 and up to get a dose of the vaccine or booster vaccination. Participants also have the option to enroll and renew in a health insurance marketplace or Medicaid plan and the entire family will receive free admission to tour the museum.
The vaccination clinic event will also have free face painting and arts and crafts for children to enjoy. Masks are required.
The event will take place this Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., at the Virginia Living Museum. No appointment is required.
