What is the future of the COVID-19 vaccine? Experts say its hard to tell – WNCT

NEW BERN, N.C. (WNCT) Its been over two years since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Since then, the medical community has produced three versions of vaccines and a booster shot to combat the virus.

Now, medical professionals are trying to figure out if the future of COVID-19 vaccines is continuous, and if they will look similar to the yearly Flu shot injection.

The flu virus is a different family of virus, Pitt County Health Director Dr. John Silvernail said. And from season to season of influenza, we see what we call antigenic drift, which means that it changes its surface it changes its coat from season to season. So every year its got a new coat.

And we need a new vaccine theoretically to be able to attack that coat and take the coat off the virus and, and attack it. And thats the thats where the new flu vaccine comes from a new flu shot comes from every year.

Right now, experts say they just dont know if the COVID vaccine will become an ongoing yearly shot.

There is so much up in the air because this is such a new thing that were dealing with, from the scientific and epidemiology community. So were very much still figuring out what thats going to look like, says Lead Clinical Pharmacists at CarolinaEast Medical Center, Amy Copely.

We first saw the original wave in early 2020. Then the Delta wave came in late June of 2021. And finally, we saw the Omicron variant arrive in December of last year.

The question is, will we have another wave? What will it be? Copley said.

So far, experts havent caught wind of another variant out there. There are currently sub-variants of Omicron called VA2, but experts say its similar enough to the original Omicron variant that individuals who already contracted Omicron should be immune. Plus, some manufacturers are working on an Omicron-specific booster to combat this.

According to Silvernail, COVID and its vaccines havent been around nearly long enough to tell with certainty what the next step will be.

As to ongoing shots, I dont right now that we know for sure. You know, were about a year and three months into the vaccine era of COVID. Flu vaccines have been around for, you know, 50 years or more.

Copely says SARS COV2, or the virus that causes COVID-19, mutates every two or so weeks, much slower than that of HIV or Influenza. Because of that, the virus has an editor in its mutation that essentially catches mistakes that could ultimately kill the virus.

We may be able to come up with technology in the shot, that would basically knock out that editor. That would be the ultimate goal. So theres some work being done on stuff like that, including Walter Reed has done a lot of research on a pan COVID shot or vaccine. And I think the big questions that still remain would be the dose. What is the ideal dose? The frequency?

If they do produce another version of the COVID-19 vaccine, the questions will be: How often do we need to take it? And, will doses be different for adults and children?

We need a way to contain it and live with it in an endemic state as opposed to pandemic, which means figuring out how do we make it more stable and not have these waves or pulses like weve seen with Delta and with Omicron. And basically have a baseline more controllable state. It doesnt mean it will go away. It doesnt mean people wont get it or wont die from it, but vastly reducing that risk. And one of those paths is vaccination or continued shots.

Silvernail says guidance over the vaccines has been an influx and can be confusing to the general public on what they should and should not get regarding the COVID-19 vaccine. He says if youve completed the series, getting your first two doses, then talk to your doctor, health department, local pharmacists or someone else who can answer the question as to when you as an individual should get a booster or third dose for that vaccine.

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What is the future of the COVID-19 vaccine? Experts say its hard to tell - WNCT