WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) – Top health officials are warning of a Covid surge ahead of the holidays because many Americans have not received their updated shots.
According to the latest CDC data, nursing homes have some of the lowest vaccination rates but are home to the highest concentration of vulnerable people.
“This is where Covid likes to hit,” said Dr. Francesca Ceddia, the chief medical affairs officer at Moderna. “People in nursing homes are being visited from external people. There is a risk that you’re actually bringing in the disease.”
The data shows less than one in four residents and only two percent of staff are up to date on their Covid shots. Unlike the beginning of the pandemic, Ceddia said the issue is not limited supply.
“It’s more a problem of fatigue, sometimes misinformation,” she said.
Ceddia said the focus on nursing homes is so important because they are usually an early warning sign of what will happen to the general public.
“Getting those vaccination rates up is really important to us,” said Dawn O’Connell, the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
O’Connell said the Biden administration has not only sent vaccinations to these facilities but also tests.
“To make sure that those communities can keep themselves safe and protected,” she said.
These officials stress the public health emergency may have ended, but Americans are still dying from Covid so they encourage everyone to play a part in controlling the spread of infections.
“I always think about vaccinations as an act of generosity,” Ceddia said. “What a better gift than protecting yourself and your loved ones.”
