From March 29, 2021, until the end of that year, IU administered about 42,000 COVID-19 vaccines.
(Joey Mendolia WFIU/WTIU News)
Amid the biggest COVID-19 surge in the past two years, Bloomington is also experiencing a spike as students return to classes at Indiana University.
The city’s Wastewater Scan Dashboard shows the spike in COVID particles, a key indicator of the virus’s status.
Experts are urging people to get the newest COVID vaccine, which the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved last week. It targets the latest strain, the KP.2 variant, and is made by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna.
IU’s Student Health Center will only be receiving a shipment of 50 vaccines. Pete Grogg, executive director at the Student Health Center, said he doesn’t order many vaccines at a time because he doesn’t see many students getting the vaccine from the facility.
This graph shows Covid-19 surges in Bloomington based off of particles in the wastewater since August 2022. Bloomington is experiencing the biggest Covid-19 surge in two years. (WastewaterScan Dashboard)
“The shelf life is short, the vaccines are expensive, so we don’t want to waste money by having vaccine expire before use,” he said.
From March 29, 2021, until the end of that year, IU administered about 42,000 COVID vaccines.
Graham McKeen, Indiana University director of public and environmental health, is concerned people might be off guard.
“We're just wishing it away,” McKeen said. “We're not thinking about it. A lot of people maybe get symptoms, don't even get tested. I think a lot of it's just fatigue, just lack of care, empathy.”
COVID is more prevalent now partly because each strain becomes more transmissible, and immunity has waned over time, McKeen said. There are also few precautions in place to keep the virus from spreading. Fewer people are wearing masks, and with more people inside because of hot weather, COVID can spread quickly.
“The CDC’s guidance is they want to treat this just like a cold or a flu, and that you should isolate for 24 hours, as long as you feel better,” McKeen said. “After that 24 hours, you don't have a fever, you can return to society, and you should wear a mask for five days. Very few people are even doing that, but we also know that when you get COVID-19, you're infectious for several days, not just 24 hours.”
Having a seasonal fall COVID-19 vaccine is not enough, McKeen said, especially when cases are surging as they are now. Having clean air is also key.
“I will scream on the mountaintops about this …we still need to clean the air,” he said. “You can see I have two HEPA filters next to me here. We need better air changes per hour. We need better filtration, we need better ventilation.”
Graham McKeen, Indiana University director of public and environmental health, said an annual vaccine is not enough to adequately protect people from COVID-19. (Isabella Vesperini)
This surge lines up with students coming back for school. McKeen said people should expect COVID to continue to be widespread in the next few weeks.
“I think we're about peaking right now,” he said. “It's estimated there's 1.2 million cases of covid per day in the U.S. as we talk right here. And about one in 35 Americans that you see currently have COVID-19. It is popping and so therefore I think we needed to have a better strategy than solely annual vaccine.”
People should aim to get the vaccine in October, if possible, so they have immunity later in the fall and winter, when McKeen said there will be another surge. He also recommends people wear KN-95 masks in crowded settings.
“If you do wear a mask, wear a good one,” he said. “The COVID virus is about 0.4 microns in size. That is not big, and it's going to get around a surgical mask that's loose. It's going to get through a cloth mask.”
Long COVID is also an issue, McKeen said. Some people can continue to face health problems long after having COVID.
Significantly fewer people have gotten the vaccine in the last few years.
The Student Health Center will most likely not be offering older versions of the vaccine; Grogg recommends people get the most recent one. Older vaccines are still effective, but the newer one targets the latest COVID variant. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends everyone 6 months and older get the vaccine.
Amy Thibault, lead director of external communications for CVS Pharmacy, said in an email that their pharmacies should be receiving the new COVID vaccine within the next couple days. You can either schedule a time to get the vaccine or walk in.
“The CDC’s Bridge Access Program, which provided no-cost COVID vaccines to uninsured and underinsured adults, has ended,” Thibault said in the email. “The vaccine is no-cost through mostinsurance plans if the pharmacy is in network.”
Kroger Manager of Corporate Affairs Eric Halvorson said Kroger pharmacies in Bloomington also have the new vaccine and have tests available for purchase.
