CDC Director Warns You Don't Fall for These 2 COVID Myths Before Winter Surge
Mandy Cohen, CDC Director, reveals two myths that could be harming your health.
The updated COVID-19 vaccines hit shelves five weeks ago. However, very few Americans have gotten their annual shot – far less than those who have already gotten their flu shot. In a new interview, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Mandy Cohen discusses the current vaccine crisis and also reveals two big COVID myths that are harming public health.
According to Cohen, the U.S. remains "on track" to hit last year's vaccination levels. In 2022, about 17 percent of the U.S. population got the COVID-19 vaccine.
This year, 12 million people, or about 3.6 percent of the population, have gotten the shot.
Many more, 16 million, have gotten their annual flu vaccine, which Cohen attributes to routines.
She also attributes the low number to the difference in process, now that insurers are paying for the vaccine rather than the federal government.
She adds that visibility has also decreased, which could mean the vaccination numbers are actually higher. "When you don't purchase and distribute, you also aren't getting the same real-time information about who's vaccinated. The number is really just a number that our pharmacy partners share back with us voluntarily," she said.
"Look, I want as many people vaccinated as possible," she adds. "I certainly want to make sure that we're getting to our over 65 population."
"The flu shots have been around for a lot longer, and people have sort of worked it into their routine, and so the flu shot uptake is higher than what we were seeing, at least with the past COVID boosters," she added.
"The COVID shot is a new formulation, so we'll see if that matters to folks. It's paired at the same time with the flu shot, so we'll see if that changes how people are thinking about it and the uptake," she adds.
She then revealed the two COVID myths harming public health. "I think there's a lot of folks that say 'I got the original ones. Aren't we done here?' Or 'I've had COVID, aren't I protected?'" she said. "I'm trying to help them understand two important facts: One is that the virus has changed. And this updated vaccine is mapped to those changes in the virus."
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The other? Immunity dwindles. "And then the other fact is we're seeing in the data that your protection from either a previous vaccine or from having COVID before decreases over time," she said.
