FORT WORTH, Texas — Did you get COVID-19 during the omicron surge? This is when experts say you should get the vaccine booster shot, and how long a booster will continue to provide some immunity from the virus.
Q. Is a booster necessary if I had COVID-19?
A. People who had COVID-19 and do not get vaccinated after their recovery are more likely to get COVID-19 again than those who do get vaccinated after recovery, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
There are many studies backing up the importance of boosters. They suggest that booster shots are the best protection against COVID, and people who receive boosters are less likely to be hospitalized if they get sick.
A. January study by Oregon Health Science University found people who have the best protection from the virus have “hybrid immunity,” meaning they were either fully vaccinated and had COVID, or had COVID and then got the vaccines.
Nonboosted individuals with recent vaccination or recent COVID infection were at greater risk of infection compared with boosted individuals, another study found.
A study published in March by the New England Journal of Medicine found that two doses of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines provide little protection against symptomatic illness caused by the omicron variant, but a booster shot was able to restore protection for at least two months.
Q. When should I get the booster shot if I recently had COVID?
A. Wait until after you recover from COVID-19 infection to get the booster shot, the CDC says. That means you’ve isolated for five days, your symptoms have resolved and you have been fever-free for 24 hours without using fever-reducing medication.
Also, make sure the recommended time has elapsed since your primary series of Pfizer (five months), Moderna (five months) or J&J (two months) vaccine.
If you’re severely ill or immunocompromised, you should wait until your 10-day isolation period ends before getting the booster shot.
If you’ve been hospitalized and treated with monoclonal antibodies, you will need to wait 90 days before getting a COVID booster, according to Houston Methodist.
Q. How long does booster immunity last?
A. Booster effectiveness wanes after four months, according to a February CDC study.
Booster protection against hospitalization was at 91% during the first two months. It fell to 78% by the fourth month after the booster.
Q. What’s the latest on a second booster shot?
A. “The potential future requirement for an additional boost or a fourth shot for mRNA or a third shot for J&J is being very carefully monitored in real time,” said Dr. Anthony Fauci at a Feb. 16 White House press briefing. “And recommendations, if needed, will be updated according to the data as it evolves.”
The Food and Drug Administration has already begun reviewing data to determine whether a fourth dose would increase protection from infection and severe illness that waned after the first booster.
The FDA could authorize a second booster dose of Pfizer and Moderna by the fall.
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