Lindstrom addresses boosters, vaccine myths, Covid-19 misconceptions
SOUTH BEND - Director at Pacific County Public Health & Human Services Katie Lindstrom addressed more topics related to the COVID-19 pandemic to continue to maintain public awareness.
Lindstrom graduated from Oregon State University with a Bachelor's of Science Degree in Social Sciences and has worked for the Pacific County Health Department for nearly 19 years. Lindstrom was promoted to director of the department in December 2019.
Below is Part II of Lindstrom's interview.
Herald: What are your thoughts about when a fourth booster is necessary? Should people boost now or boost later or not at all?
Lindstrom: We do recommend that folks get the boosters as soon as they are eligible. Currently, those who are over age 50 and those over age 12, who are immune compromised are eligible for a second booster, and everyone who has completed their initial series at least five months ago is eligible for a first booster. There is a school of thought suggesting value for those eligible to "time" their second booster for a later date when case rates are higher and/ or we have a more virulent variant. While I can understand some of the logic behind this, I think this strategy could be risky for a few reasons. Our case data is not as reliable as it was earlier in the pandemic which makes it difficult to know when the case rates are actually increasing and by how much. This is primarily due to the recent increase in home testing, which is generally a good thing, but does result in less accurate data, as many of those who test positive are not reporting their cases. These factors make it difficult to accurately "time' that second booster because we don't know that cases are increasing sometimes until a few weeks after the fact, once hospitalizations and deaths start to increase.
