On the horizon: A new omicron-focused version of the Moderna vaccine that may offer longer protection and a stronger immune response.
Talking about vaccines with trusted health care providers and with family can help wade through the sea of information – and misinformation.
Morsa Images/DigitalVison via Getty Images
Jaime Sidani, University of Pittsburgh Health Sciences; Beth Hoffman, University of Pittsburgh Health Sciences, and Maya Ragavan, University of Pittsburgh Health Sciences
With COVID-19 shots finally available for infants and preschoolers, knowing how to combat misinformation on social media and elsewhere could be more important than ever.
With mask mandates and vaccine requirements lifting, public health information remains crucial so people can weigh their own COVID-19 risks.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette
To help people make informed decisions about ongoing COVID-19 risks, public health messaging needs to adapt as the pandemic evolves, just as immune systems adapt to new viruses and variants.
Global Justice campaigners in London stand by fake coffins to highlight global COVID-19 deaths. If pharma companies waived intellectual property rights, it would be easier for low- and middle-income countries to access COVID-19 vaccines.
(AP Photo/Alastair Grant)
Ronald Labonte, L’Université d’Ottawa/University of Ottawa
Waiving patent rights on COVID-19 vaccines and drugs is still crucial to ensure access globally, but the waiver on the table at the June World Trade Organization meeting doesn’t do the job.
Understanding the depth of vaccine hesitancy, and the drivers behind the lack of take-up is critical to preventing further deaths, infections, and continuing harm to the economy.
Inhaled vaccine delivery could take on not only COVID-19, but also other respiratory infections, including tuberculosis.
(Shutterstock)
An inhaled COVID-19 vaccine would go directly to where the body would use it: the mucosal surface of the airways. This could mean less waste and more benefit, lower costs and reduced side-effects.
About 8 million U.S. children have received two shots of COVID-19 vaccine and are now eligible for a third.
KoldoyChris/Moment via Getty Images
The COVID-19 vaccines continue to be effective against severe illness leading to hospitalization and death in all age groups, including children ages 5 to 11.
The COVID-19 mRNA vaccines put nanomedicine in the spotlight as a potential way to treat diseases like cancer and HIV. While the field isn’t there yet, better design could help fulfill its promise.
Studies show if medical staff talk about potential side effects in negative terms, the patient’s experience can worsen. We need to consider this ‘nocebo’ effect when talking about COVID vaccinations.
The CDC recommends the second booster for those over 50 who received their initial booster shot at least four months earlier.
Scott Olson via Getty Images News
At this point it’s pragmatic to integrate COVID-19 management into routine health practices.
While the vast majority of primary care providers have higher confidence in vaccines than the general public, some do not.
Evgeniy Shkolenko/iStock via Getty Images Plus
Many COVID-19 vaccination campaigns encourage doctors to serve as a trusted source of vaccine information. But certain vaccine-hesitant providers may stymie these efforts.
Millions of U.S. children ages 5-11 have already received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.
Keith Birmingham/MediaNews Group/Pasadena Star-News via Getty Images
Moderna will ask the FDA to allow emergency use for its vaccine in children as young as 6 months, a step many parents have been anticipating.
While many immunocompromised and high-risk patients may benefit from AstraZeneca’s Evusheld, drug distribution and access have been uneven.
AP Photo/Ted S. Warren
Kumanan Wilson, L’Université d’Ottawa/University of Ottawa
Vaccine passports became one of the most divisive issues of the COVID-19 pandemic. These policies were affected not only by public opinion but by new variants and changing goals for herd immunity.
BA.2, one of three main omicron sublineages, is sweeping the world.
BlackJack3D/iStock via Getty Images Plus
The latest addition to the omicron lineage has been making waves in Europe. Whether it will do the same in the U.S. depends on rates of vaccination and prior infection.
Misinformation about COVID-19 vaccines affecting fertility have no realistic basis.
(AP Photo/John Locher)
Some of the most persistent myths about COVID-19 vaccination have been false rumours that it can affect fertility in men or women. There has never been any evidence to support this misinformation.
Only 14% of people in poorer countries have received one vaccine dose, but a leaked WTO ‘solution’ to waive patents fails to ensure developing countries can access life-saving vaccines and medicines.
Paediatrician at the Royal Childrens Hospital and Associate Professor and Clinician Scientist, University of Melbourne and MCRI, Murdoch Children's Research Institute