another booster.?

[sweetpea19]

does anyone know if and when we will get another covid booster this year , I’m sure I read that some of us should be getting one. Thankyou

[DJK12]

I can only tell you about Scotland where the spring boosters are being offered from 11th April and again include those with compromised immune systems.

[Rem31]

In England it will be between April and June. In my local area care homes are being prioritised from 3 April.

Here is a link to the spring booster information for England currently on gov.uk:

gov.uk/government/publicati...

[Arnoldthecat]

Hi Yes, i have ET and received a text from my surgery saying i was eligible for the spring Covid booster, although i have decided against having it.

[Anouchka]

I’ve had my fifth (here in France), early this year. Another Pfizer, which I don’t react to well = it causes UTIs and that, together with Jakavi (also one of its side effects), is still rumbling around in my “system”. I go for a bladder ultrasound this week, to find out if there may be another issue hanging over my head…. The Moderna was not given anywhere in the region I live in.

Hope you get your answer.

[Inca in reply to Anouchka]

Hi Anouchka,I had my 5th Pfizer here in Fr,before Xmas I think actually,I have not had any probs with Pfizer,La Grippe tho was a different matter! I am PV ,we all react differently it seems. Like you tho ,I am having probs which appears progression to MF,having another B M B & my Jakavi med halved as all bloods have crashed.....it’s a difficult disease to manage our MP Ns,my care here is great tho.Hope you soon are sorted out,Good Luck to you.🤗

[Anouchka in reply to Inca]

Thanks for your uplifting words, Inca. Wow! Halved! Hope things are ok for you.

PV is indeed a very odd, quizzical disease to manage… but as you say the care here is great. No complaints there.

Good luck to you too.

[Inca in reply to Anouchka]

Where are you Anouchka? I am Aquitaine,Lot et Garonne.My nearest hospital is Agen,had the same consultant for 13 yrs & G P for longer!My first consultant since diagnosis has just retired 😢 but new one seems very up to date & competent.Iam a bit weary since she halved the Jakavi but it is to see if my bloods raise ,they have been perfect for ages,this is a big shock the huge drop,I am tested monthly ,the last two months dropping dramatically.Been thru every possibility with her for the reason,not a marvelllous outlook I must say.Just got to keep positive,we have to don’t we.Best to you.🤗

[Anouchka in reply to Inca]

I’m in the Aude, Inca, south of Carcassonne. My hematologist/oncologist is Carcassonne hospital and in close consult with Toulouse Oncology. My GP cum homeopath diagnosed after a rather high platelet and red blood cell count, with it being conf’d by hematologist. The Onco team is fantastic. I’m on 3-weekly blood tests, and now a 4-month hiatus with hematologist. Bloods are good, but platelets inching up. 🥹 but I try not to worry as it’s not “drastic” and could be due to other things. I’m just really weary of my PV side-effects, one being a constant heaviness and feeling of tightness around calves and ankles. And the constant anxiety I might be getting another UTI - although upcoming ultrasound may give another indication. We shall see.

Yes, we remain positive - always. 😊 Best to you too and hope you find a reason for the drop. 🤞🤞

[mhos61]

My hubby has been called up for his in April, he doesn’t have an MPN, but he is immunocompromised. I do have an MPN and haven’t been called up…yet!

[amhann]

hello sweetpea19 - in England I gather the national booking service will be running from around 5th April onwards (Im ET + NHlymphoma + I’ll either book or head for a walk-in as I’ll be 6 months from my last) very best Anne-Marie.

[ciye]

I didn't have a 4th one and won't be having any more.

[GK40 in reply to ciye]

Same!! No more for me

[GardNerd]

I got the bivalent booster in September 2022 and just got a second one in March 2023 (six months later). I got Moderna and had no problems, other than a sore arm.

In the US, the CDC is recommending annual boosters; but I went ahead and got one, because they didn’t say you “can’t” get one sooner. I was afraid they might turn me away, since it hadn’t been a year; but they didn’t.

Also, the FDA is in the process of meeting to perhaps recommend that immunocompromised and older people can get one every six months. If the FDA recommends that, then it will go to the CDC for them to weigh in. All that should be done in the next 2-3 weeks. Hopefully, they’ll officially recommend it (or at least make it clear that it’s fine to get boosted again).

[wateron in reply to GardNerd]

Didn't you have to fill out a form with your medical insurance or could you just pay for it? if so, what did it cost. Thought the government kept records and would stop you from getting another booster (I also want one)

[GardNerd in reply to wateron]

I filled out a on line form but didn’t have to pay. They might have billed my insurance or it’s possible the government is still paying for now.

[wateron in reply to GardNerd]

Where did you get the shot at?

[GardNerd in reply to wateron]

CVS in the US.

[wateron in reply to GardNerd]

What about this in the CVS paperwork "If I am receiving a COVID-19 vaccine dose, I attest I am eligible for that dose according to current recommendations from the CDC. (Required)"

[GardNerd in reply to wateron]

I don’t think that was part of their process when I went for mine. We should be hearing within a few weeks whether the CDC is going to recommend more frequent boosters for older people and those who are immunocompromised. If they approve that, it would help a lot with clarity.

[wateron in reply to GardNerd]

CDC just announced

sfchronicle.com/health/arti...

[GardNerd in reply to wateron]

I don’t have a subscription so couldn’t see the article. I’ve been googling to see something similar and wasn’t able to find much — except for this: npr.org/sections/health-sho...

[wateron in reply to GardNerd]

There is finally clarity for Americans wondering whether it’s time to get another COVID-19 booster shot. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued guidelines on Monday emphatically stating that one updated dose is sufficient, even for individuals who received their last vaccination more than six months ago. “At this time, one updated booster dose is recommended for everyone in order to maintain protection from severe illness,” the agency said. “Receiving more than one updated booster is not currently authorized by the U.S. Federal Food and Drug Administration.”U.S. health officials had previously stated that the current baseline of protection should be enough to move the nation toward an annual booster aimed at the latest strains in circulation. Their focus is shifting from preventing new infections to reducing the severity of the disease. “The bottom line is that there is some waning of protection for those who got boosters more than six months ago and haven’t had an intervening infection,” said Bob Wachter, UCSF’s chair of medicine, in response to the CDC announcement. “But the level of protection versus severe infection continues to be fairly high, good enough that people who aren’t at super high risk are probably fine waiting until a new booster comes out in the fall.”Recent studies have shown that the protection provided by the bivalent booster shot, which was engineered to guard against the original coronavirusstrain as well as more recent BA.4/5 omicron subvariants, decreases after a few months. But U.S. health officials have not seen enough data to justify rolling out another round of shots.“There is a lot we don’t know about the efficacy of the new bivalent booster,” said Peter Chin-Hong, an infectious disease expert with UCSF. “But what we do know is that it prevents serious hospitalizations and death, particularly in those who are older than 75 and who are very immune compromised.” Yvonne Maldonado, an infectious disease expert at Stanford, said, “Overall, we are at a point where most people are now probably immune from infection or vaccination, or both.”While more than 81% of the U.S. population has had at least one vaccine dose, only 16.4% of those eligible have received the latest boosters, which were authorized in August. In California, about 25% of residents have received the bivalent shot. But millions more around the country haven’t had a booster for a year or more.“Given the very low risk of the vaccine, personally I’d prefer that older patients and those with multiple medical comorbidities be given a choice about another booster and discuss it with their health care professional,” Wachter said. “For example, if one were offered to my 87-year-old mother with a history of lung cancer, who lives in a region with moderately high prevalence, I’d have her take it. For me, a healthy 65-year-old in a low prevalence region. I probably wouldn’t.”Several countries, including the United Kingdom and Canada, have begun offering additional boosters to those at high risk for COVID-19, such as nursing home residents and people with compromised immune systems. But the CDC’s Jessica MacNeil told a National Foundation for Infectious Diseases webinar last week that for the U.S., “I don't think that there’s anything immediately on the horizon.”“I think most of the hesitancy in the U.S. so far in terms of allowing older and immune-compromised folks to have the option of an additional bivalent booster is because of the absence of data,” said Chin-Hong. “The U.K. and Canada don’t have a secret treasure trove of new data that we are not privy to. Rather, they are acting on the same data and trying to be proactive.”Officials from the California Department of Public Health say they will update state guidelines based on recommendations from federal agencies. “Having everybody wait for the new booster in the fall isn’t a terrible choice,” Wachter said. “If you got your booster in September, you’re very likely going to be fine, particularly if you take Paxlovid if you got COVID.”Meanwhile, the World Health Organization updated its COVID-19 vaccination guidelines on Tuesday, prioritizing booster shots for older and high-risk groups, while suggesting that healthy children and adolescents may not need a shot at all. The UN agency recommends that those facing the greatest threat of severe disease and death from COVID-19 should receive an additional shot of the vaccine between 6 and 12 months after their last vaccine dose.Hanna Nohynek, chair of the WHO’s Strategic Group of Experts on immunization, which made the recommendations, said, “The revised road map re-emphasizes the importance of vaccinating those still at risk of severe disease.”While the WHO’s latest guidelines reflect the current disease picture and global immunity levels, she said they should not be seen as long-term guidance over the need for annual boosters.Maldonado said even though things have improved, it’s important that people do not become complacent.“I recognize there are people who think we should not give boosters at all. But I think the vaccines have been proven to be safe and effective,” she said. “So far, we are seeing that boosted people are less likely to get sick, hospitalized and die.”

[GardNerd in reply to wateron]

Thanks! There's a lot of good news in there.

[Otterfield]

Nobody "brags" about getting boosters. People just state whether they are having them or not.