Confusion About COVID Booster Dose Leads Doctors To ‘Clear The Air’

Mixed messaging has caused tremendous confusion throughout this pandemic about who should get the vaccine and who should not, and now we are hearing questions about the booster dose. 

According to the Kaiser Family Foundation Poll, 38% of the public says the booster information has been confusing. 

"I have had people come in and tell me my antibody count is low. I got my blood checked. I don't even know what that means, and you would think I would be the first to know," said Dr. David Chansolme with Integris Health. 

Now health officials are in damage control mode, trying to stop the spread of misinformation. 

The CDC, FDA, and advisory committee on immunizations recommend boosters for Oklahomans 65 and older patients with underlying health conditions, people living in long-term care facilities, and those frequently exposed to COVID, like healthcare workers. 

This is for the Pfizer vaccine only, and you must be at least six months past your second dose. 

Doctors say the booster dose shows the same side effects you might have seen with pain at the injection site, fatigue, and headache in your first two shots. 

The point health officials make is that this booster dose will not solve the pandemic of the unvaccinated. 

"It's the unvaccinated. It's nothing to do with the boosters that are changing the trajectory of this pandemic or our escape philosophy of getting out of the pandemic," said Dr. John Armitage with the Oklahoma Blood Institute. 

Health officials point out people 65 years and older are the ones really going to benefit from this booster because fully vaccinated patients in that age group are still getting sick enough to go to the hospital.