Return of the booster: Today So Far

Initial Covid vaccines were like "Star Wars: A New Hope." Omicron's arrival was like "The Empire Strikes Back." The new booster shots are like "Return of the Jedi," all the gumption of the first release with some fancy new tricks.

This post originally appeared in KUOW's Today So Far newsletter for October 13, 2022.

I think we need to call the latest Covid booster shot the "Awesome Shot," or "Awesomecron," or maybe "Crystal Pepsi" ... "Booster 2: Electric Boogaloo?" — any marketing gimmick that spurs folks to give it a try while sending the message that this updated Covid booster not only covers the original virus, but also the pesky omicron strain. It's the most up-to-date and has arrived just ahead of the worst time of the year.

I dunno, maybe we can get some TikTok influencers on it too. Calling it a "bivalent booster" doesn't seem to be packing the punch needed to get folks to pull up their sleeves. Last week, KUOW reported that about 10% of eligible people in King County have gotten the new booster.

I covered this issue a little bit yesterday, but I feel it's significant enough to give it an extra boost — pun!

Initial vaccines were like "Star Wars: A New Hope." Then omicron arrived, which was like "The Empire Strikes Back," but we learned some important information from it. The new booster shots are like "Return of the Jedi," all the gumption of the first release with some fancy new tricks.

The new Covid booster shot is a good precaution going into fall and winter. Federal officials are bracing for another rise in cases over the next few months. Covid trends in Europe always seem to be ahead of the USA by a few weeks, and cases in Europe are already inching higher.

"I hope people are ... thinking about the looming holidays coming up, with Thanksgiving, and wanting to gather with friends and family and thinking about protecting themselves and protecting their family," Dr. Shireesha Dhanireddy with UW Medicine told KUOW's Seattle Now this morning.

Dr. Dhanireddy doesn't blame people for being fatigued after the past couple years, and she understands that it's a very different phase of the pandemic these days.

"We go out now, you cannot even tell there is a pandemic going on. People are living their lives. Children are back in school. People are going out to dinner. This is a very different time we are in ... I want to remind people that we are here because of the vaccine, and we are here because they have had a significant impact on decreasing hospitalizations and deaths."

Dr. Dhanireddy says it's time to start thinking about the Covid vaccine like other shots we commonly get, from the flu to tetanus — regular things you do to take care of yourself.

The problem is not just slow uptake. People who do want a shot are finding it challenging to get an appointment. Washington state doesn't have enough supply for the overall demand right now. There are a few reasons for this. I was just chatting with a Washington State Department of Health spokesperson who noted that Moderna is behind on its production quotas and that is causing supplies to lag. That means you're most likely to find Pfizer available around the state.

Currently, pharmacies in central and eastern Washington have a lot more available appointments than locations around the more-populated Puget Sound region.

Don't give up. KUOW has put together these tips for getting a Covid booster — from checking different sources to maybe taking a little road trip.

Dr. Dhanireddy notes that UW Medicine has a lot of open appointments right now.

This all adds up to a bigger picture. Cutting down on Covid illnesses means far fewer impacts on our lives this season. It means holiday travel is not as disrupted. It means supply chains keep running for gift-buying season (seriously, my wife Nina has been trying to get a PS5 for months now). Of course, it also means that you or a loved one can get care when you need it.

"The main thing is, really, hospitalizations and deaths," Dr. Dhanireddy said. "We all know our hospital systems are already stretched. Even as the surge has come down, our admission rates are still really high, and to have another surge is really scary when we think about all the other illnesses we see around holiday time, like heart disease, strokes, heart attacks ... if our hospital systems are overrun with people, huge numbers of Covid and flu that could be prevented, this could lead to deaths down stream related to other issues because people cannot access care."

AS SEEN ON KUOW

Snoqualmie tribal member Bethany Fackrell sings before the release of endangered juvenile kokanee salmon into Lake Sammamish on Wednesday, October 12, 2022. (Megan Farmer / KUOW)

DID YOU KNOW?

Actress Angela Lansbury passed away this week. Maybe you remember her as the voice of Mrs. Potts in "Beauty and the Beast," or as Miss Eglantine Price in "Bedknobs and Broomsticks." Her iconic roles reach back to her screen debut in 1944's "Gaslight." Personally, I'm fond of the "Murder, She Wrote" / "Magnum PI" two-episode crossover — you had to watch both shows to get the complete story. She was loved across many roles, however, that love never shined through at the Emmys. Lansbury holds the record for most Emmy snubs, having been nominated 18 times and not winning once.

Lansbury was a bit of a globetrotter and held citizenship in three different countries — The UK, Ireland, and the United States. In the United Kingdom, she was a dame, which is like female knighthood in England. It's similar to how Patrick Stewart is Sir Patrick Stewart. The honor of dame or sir in the Order of the British Empire is given for great deeds in public service, such as the arts, science, or charity. When Lansbury was given the title in 2014, she joined actresses Julie Andrews and Elizabeth Taylor who were both given the title in 2000. Angelina Jolie was made an honorary dame in 2014. Other dames include Olivia Newton-John, Judi Dench, and Hellen Mirren.

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