A version of this story appeared in the May 20 edition of CNN's Coronavirus: Fact vs. Fiction newsletter. Sign up here to receive the need-to-know headlines every weekday.
A booster dose for people who have already been vaccinated may be needed as soon as eight to 12 months after their second shot, Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla and Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said yesterday.
As inoculations around the world continue to increase, medical experts believe coronavirus may end up being like influenza, which requires a new vaccine every year. This is because the circulating strains mutate quickly, and immunity from the vaccine soon wears off.
Over in the United Kingdom, the government announced the launch of a new clinical trial looking specifically into booster shots yesterday. The trial, led by the University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust, will study the impact of seven different Covid-19 vaccines when given as a third dose.
And researchers at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are already looking into whether a booster specific to variants that are already in the US will be needed as well, if protection against the virus fades over time.
However, Fauci said such variant-specific boosters may not be needed. "Instead of having to play whack-a-mole with each individual variant and develop a booster that's variant-specific, it is likely that you could just keep boosting against the wild type, and wind up getting a good enough response that you wouldn't have to worry about the variants," he said.
The World Health Organization's regional director for Europe, Dr. Hans Henri P. Kluge, said today that all current approved Covid-19 vaccines are effective against all known variants of the virus.
The need for an annual booster shot might become a minor inconvenience in rich countries, but it could become a serious problem in the developing world.
Gavi, the vaccine alliance, is hoping that shots distributed through the vaccine-sharing initiative known as COVAX will reach 27% of the populations of lower-income countries this year. But the scheme is already facing shortages, because of a lack of supplies caused by increased demand in India, the world's largest vaccine manufacturer.
YOU ASKED. WE ANSWERED.
Q: Do I have to take my mask off if I am fully vaccinated?
A: No. Just because the CDC says you can doesn't mean that you have to. It's a personal decision.
"There are some vaccinated people who should still take precautions and keep their masks on," CNN Medical Analyst Dr. Leana Wen said.
"This is particularly true for those with severe immunosuppression. If you are a transplant patient on immunosuppression medications or have cancer and are on chemotherapy, you should still keep your mask on and keep distancing in public places where people around you could be unvaccinated and unmasked," she said.
Other people may be generally healthy, but still want to take extra precautions. That's OK too.
"You should proceed at your own pace. Vaccination protects you very well from contracting Covid-19 and spreading it to others, but it's not 100%. If the small possibility is something that worries you, you could continue to wear masks in higher-risk settings," Wen said.
Send your questions here. Are you a health care worker fighting Covid-19? Message us on WhatsApp about the challenges you're facing: +1 347-322-0415.
WHAT'S IMPORTANT TODAY
India grapples with 'black fungus' drug shortage as cases rise among Covid-19 patients
Several Indian states are facing shortages of a drug used to treat black fungus, a rare and potentially fatal infection that is increasingly being detected in Covid-19 patients, health authorities have warned.
The infection, known by doctors as mucormycosis, had been seen in India before the pandemic, but cases are mounting rapidly. It is caused by mold found in wet environments and can attack the respiratory tract, particularly of those with compromised immune systems.
At least 90 people have died of black fungus in the western state of Maharashtra, which includes the bustling financial center Mumbai and has been hit hard by the pandemic. At least 800 people are currently hospitalized with the infection.
Israeli-Palestinian violence could trigger a third wave in Gaza. Some say it's already here.
Rasha Abu Askar tested positive for Covid-19 less than two weeks ago. So too did her husband, Musa Abu Askar, leaving the couple unable to look after their four young children, a situation that many parents around the world have dreaded during the pandemic.
But this couple live in Gaza and their problems are bigger than childcare arrangements. Two days after they sent their children to their grandparents' apartment, the worst violence in years erupted on their doorstep between Israel's powerful military and Palestinian militant group Hamas, armed with rockets and mortars.
A UN report citing Palestinian Health Ministry data in April showed a 60% increase in active Covid-19 cases in Gaza, though infections appeared to be abating at the end of the month.
Gaza residents, authorities, medical staff and humanitarian agencies are now worried the enclave could be hit by a third wave of Covid-19, Abeer Salman, Ibrahim Dahman and Angela Dewan report.
Covid-19 linked to nearly 1 million excess deaths in 29 high-income countries
The pandemic likely contributed to an extra 979,000 deaths in 2020 across 29 high-income countries, according to a study led by an international team of scientists and published Wednesday in the British Medical Journal.
Researchers looked at data from 29 countries included in the Human Mortality Database, which collects data from national agencies. About 458,000 of the excess deaths, or nearly half, occurred in the US. The official Covid-19 death toll in the US in 2020 was 339,014.
ON OUR RADAR
- The European Union will begin to ease travel restrictions to the bloc, with the EU Council agreeing on measures to allow fully vaccinated foreign visitors in.
- Vitamin D's effect on Covid-19 may be exaggerated. And yes, taking too much of it can hurt you.
- A total of 1.5 million people in Nepal are unable to get their second dose of a Covid-19 vaccine, as the country's stocks run out and supply prospects have become clouded by India's curb on vaccine exports.
- Actress Salma Hayek says she battled a near-fatal case of Covid-19. "My doctor begged me to go to the hospital because it was so bad," Hayek told Variety. "I said, 'No, thank you. I'd rather die at home.'"
- The Singapore and Indian governments berated a senior Indian opposition politician for fanning a coronavirus scare between their countries, saying his comments were "irresponsible" and not based on facts.
- Hours after launching his campaign for governor, a Nevada Republican who had not yet received the coronavirus vaccine said he had just tested positive for the virus.
TODAY'S TOP TIP
Millions of older people are finding themselves struggling with physical, emotional and cognitive challenges following a year of being cooped up inside, stopping usual activities and seeing few, if any, people.
If they don't address issues that have arisen during the pandemic -- muscle weakness, poor nutrition, disrupted sleep, anxiety, social isolation and more -- these older adults face the prospect of poorer health and increased frailty, experts warn.
Here are experts' tips on how to get back into a more active life -- from catching up with your physician and eating well to reconnecting socially with friends.
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