North Carolina Faces High Respiratory Virus Risk This Holiday Season Amid Low Vaccination Rates

Holiday Gathering and Respiratory Virus Risks in North Carolina

This holiday season, gathering with loved ones may increase the risk of respiratory viruses due to low vaccination rates in North Carolina.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), only 8.8% of children and 18.9% of adults have received their latest COVID-19 vaccinations as of November 22. Among adults aged 65 and older, the vaccination rate is 41%.

Flu vaccination rates are slightly higher, with 33.2% of children and 36.6% of adults vaccinated. For adults aged 65 and older, the rate is 60.9%. Additionally, only 40.1% of adults over 75, who are recommended to receive the RSV vaccine, have done so.

Hilary Martson, the chief medical officer for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), emphasizes that vaccination is the best way to lower the risk of severe illness. She notes that the holiday season is a period when respiratory viruses often spread. Close contact with loved ones and more indoor activities create ideal conditions for these viruses to circulate.

Martson assures that current vaccines are safe and offer good protection against severe illness. She states, “These vaccines are much safer than the illnesses themselves.” She also advises families to keep up with vaccination schedules for children.

Even those who had COVID-19 this past summer should consider getting an updated vaccine if it has been three months since their infection for maximum protection.

Low vaccination rates can lead to outbreaks of other viruses, such as measles. Martson warns that if vaccination rates drop below 95%, it can result in widespread infections.

According to North Carolina’s kindergarten immunization dashboard, only 93% of kindergarteners were up to date with their required vaccinations at the start of the last school year. In Wake and Durham counties, vaccination rates were even lower at 92%. This means that around 850 students in Wake County and another 180 in Durham County might be unprotected against diseases like measles.

The CDC states that 95% of nearly 250 measles cases in the U.S. involved patients who were unvaccinated or had received only one dose of the vaccine.

To reduce the risk of respiratory viruses, wash your hands regularly, stay home when ill, and keep COVID-19 tests available at home.