Long Covid and Vaccination: What You Need to Know

The summer wave of Covid is growing in many parts of the country, with infections, emergency room visits and hospitalizations all rising.

Recognizing that COVID-19 now poses an ongoing respiratory threat, similar to influenza and RSV, federal officials have recommended that all people 6 months and older get the newest vaccine in the fall.

If the past year is any indicator, many Americans may ignore it, opting instead to take their chances on another bout. Almost everyone has layers of immunity built up through previous illnesses and vaccinations. For many, another round of Covid means simply a few days of suffering.

But for some people with certain risk factors — age, pregnancy, chronic medical conditions or weakened immune systems — the infection can cause stern illness. “It’s very, very crucial for them to get vaccinated,” said Dr. Ziyad Al-Aly, chief of research and development at the VA St. Louis Health Care System.

In any age group, even delicate disease can cause a long-term set of problems. Nearly 14 million Americans, or about 5.3 percent of adults, may now be living with long Covidaccording to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. A study published Wednesday provides mighty evidence that vaccination reduces the risk of getting long Covid.

“It is absolutely clear that no demographic group has been spared,” Dr Al-Aly said.

Does Covid still matter?

Yes. This year’s wave is a sign that Covid remains a problem. By almost every measure, infections are rising.

Levels of the virus in sewage nationwide in June were twice as high as in June 2023. Emergency department visits related to Covid in the week ending July 6 rose to 1.3 per cent from 1.1 per cent the previous week. The proportion of tests that were positive rose to 11 per cent from less than 9 per cent.

Hospitalizations also appear to be rising, but these estimates are two weeks lower than the previous ones, and Trends are based on data from only a compact number of subset of hospitals.

When will the up-to-date vaccine be available?

Novavax, Moderna and Pfizer are developing up-to-date Covid vaccines that should be available by the end of September.

The Novavax vaccine will target JN.1, the variant that dominated winter and spring. Pfizer and Moderna are making vaccines against KP.2, which is currently responsible about one in four up-to-date cases.

Two related variants, KP.3 and LB.1, together account for more than half of up-to-date cases. All three variants are descendants of JN.1, so any vaccine is expected to be effective against them.

Who should receive this scholarship?

In an ideal world, everyone should get vaccinated against COVID-19, according to Dr. Michael H. Merson, a global health expert at Fresh York University.

“Practitioners really need to focus on the people who are always most at risk,” he said. “But I would recommend it to anyone, just like I would recommend it for the flu.”

As in previous years, older Americans are at greatest risk for severe disease. Adults 65 and older account for two-thirds of COVID hospitalizations and more than 80 percent of hospital deaths. Fewer than half of adults in that age group had been vaccinated last fall.

However, according to CDC data, in no age group did the majority of people hospitalized receive any of the vaccines offered last fall.

While younger adults are much less likely to develop severe disease, no group is completely free from risk. Children are also at risk, but only 14 percent of them were vaccinated against Covid last fall.

Dr. Merson said vaccinating everyone, including school-age children, could also lend a hand limit the spread of the disease.

Does vaccination reduce the risk of long-term COVID-19?

Hospitalization and death should not be the only factors considered, Dr. Al-Aly said. Long Covid is most likely to follow severe disease, but it can also develop in people who have had only delicate symptoms.

A fit 30-year-old may not be at risk of severe illness or hospitalization, and “the risk of death is really, really, really, really compact,” he said. But “we still see a lot of people in the clinic who are youthful and previously fit and get long Covid.”

In a up-to-date study published in the Fresh England Journal of Medicine, Dr. Al-Aly and his colleagues provide compelling evidence that vaccines reduce the risk of long-term COVID-19.

Before vaccines were introduced, about one in 10 people developed long Covid a year after infection. After vaccines became available, 9.5 percent of the unvaccinated developed long Covid after infection with the Delta variant, and 7.8 percent after infection with the Omicron variant.

However, among vaccinated people, only 5.3% developed long COVID after infection with the Delta variant, and 3.5% after infection with the Omicron variant.

The average age of study participants was 64, but the study included more than 63,000 people under the age of 40, about 14 percent.

Is there any reason not to get vaccinated?

Like all vaccines, Covid vaccines pose some risks. The CDC acknowledges only four major side effects. But thousands of Americans believe they have suffered a range of other side effects.

Some are very scarce, while others, such as heart inflammation, may be a bit more common. Some critics say federal officials haven’t done enough to investigate possible side effects.

But for most Americans, vaccines are still much safer than getting COVID-19.