Is the Covid booster still necessary

Covid is around, but just not as deadly and virulent as 4 years ago. I'm 56 now and had every vaccination until 2 years ago when I was deemed not to be in a vulnerable group. Took my 79 year old mother for her vaccination two weeks ago as she was in hospital earlier this year and I can't take risks with her health.

Herd immunity works for diseases like measles when being infected or vaccinated gives lifetime immunity. If 95% of population is immune, an occasional non-immune infected person is very unlikely to spread the infection.

Unfortunately, Covid infection or vaccination only gives very short lived protection against re-infection so it seems unlikely that herd immunity will ever be reached.

I'm very pro-vaccine and have always got all available to me including annual flu one and Covid boosters till last year. Having caught Covid twice, both mild doses within a couple of months of boosters, I decided there wasn't much point in any more boosters for now. I know a few people who have had Covid recently but none who were very ill- only knew they had it because they did self-test.

However, I definitely wouldn't discourage anyone from getting yet another booster - mine is a personal decision.

Well said annodomini

I have a friend who is antivax. She has all kinds of explanations. Funny though, when she wanted to travel abroad she had to have the vaccination or she wouldn't have been allowed in to the country she wanted to travel to.

When DH was ill with cancer, the district nurse came to the house and stuck needles in his arm and mine.

That's your flu and shingles jag, said she.
I'm sure if the covid vax was available she'd have given it to us.

annodomini

For 83 years I have had every vaccination available and am grateful for them. If I'd been born, say, 50 years earlier, I could be dead by now, from whooping cough, diphtheria, polio, TB, typhoid....flu and Covid - not to mention several tropical bugs. I will continue to accept protection as long as it's available.

An Excellent Comment

*Thank You.

I shall continue to have mine.. I would never refuse protection for anything.. knowing what 'sods law is like'

I had covid last Christmas and was ill for 6 days and 11 days till I got a negative test.

I realise if I had not had the vaccines I would have been much worse.

NotSpaghetti

Farzanah I don't think we have reached "herd immunity" for Covid, even at its peak.

95% need to have the vaccine for measles for example so I would expect Covid to be similar.

Yes, you are right and my argument was flawed. It would need covid vaccine to be offered to the whole community possibly regularly, for herd immunity and it appears the government deems it unnecessary at this stage, presumably because they believe a level of immunity is taking place through natural infection, and that covid is serious only for those who are vulnerable.

Covid vaccine doesn’t appear to offer long term immunity, and therefore the onus is upon those who are deemed vulnerable by age or medical susceptibility to take up the vaccine as offered. Similar to annual flu vaccination.

I don’t think this policy whilst practical (and money saving) takes into account the large numbers of people still catching covid, which is still circulating, and many consequently suffering with long covid.

I firmly believe in vaccinations. I had my latest Covid jab a few weeks ago, Moderna apparently, with no bad reactions at all.
I don't think they would still be offered to the elderly and vulnerable without good reason.
As long as they are offered I shall have them.

For 83 years I have had every vaccination available and am grateful for them. If I'd been born, say, 50 years earlier, I could be dead by now, from whooping cough, diphtheria, polio, TB, typhoid....flu and Covid - not to mention several tropical bugs. I will continue to accept protection as long as it's available.

Good point Rosie51 and people are told to go to work with it - and test kits have to be purchased.

I was about to say I havent been offered an injection in 2 years I think, so worrying about those who refuse is pointless.

Farzanah

It’s easy to become complacent when a disease is under control (often due to vaccination) but when complacency means you don’t bother with offered vaccinations for you or you children, there is the opportunity for often life threatening disease, to gain a hold again. For example whooping cough, measles.

Vaccine refusniks are protected by most having the vaccine (herd immunity)

Except 'most' are not even being offered the Covid vaccine anymore, only older people and CEV people. My adult children had the initial two dose vaccine and one booster, never been offered any more.

Farzanah I don't think we have reached "herd immunity" for Covid, even at its peak.

95% need to have the vaccine for measles for example so I would expect Covid to be similar.

It’s easy to become complacent when a disease is under control (often due to vaccination) but when complacency means you don’t bother with offered vaccinations for you or you children, there is the opportunity for often life threatening disease, to gain a hold again. For example whooping cough, measles.

Vaccine refusniks are protected by most having the vaccine (herd immunity)

We had 3 and decided no more. My son has never had any jabs and when we passed covid on to him you would hardly know he had it. Mind you myself, husband, daughter and her partner all had covid (and all jabbed) and none of us were poorly at all.

I agree Taichinan. I have officially tested positive for covid once and was poorly for a few days. I had been vaccinated but not recently.

We have stopped testing now but I think that one of the things the pandemic has taught some of us is to be more aware of how we feel and try to keep our germs to ourselves.
I cancelled an appointment with the practice nurse because I was coughing. She thanked me.

Taichinan - I believe Covid will always be with us now anyway - as is 'flu.

I had my jab a couple of weeks ago I think we re on number 8 aren’t we ? Anyway whatever number it is I ve had them all never had a reaction at all not even a sore arm
I’ve had Covid twice but only been like a cold nothing more I will have what they offer me as although I think I m fairly fit I am older
My sons now on his third time of Covid been off work a week most of my family had Covid 2/3/4 times it still there and will continue to be

I am CEV so will continue with the jabs. When I did get Covid, I just spent two days in bed and wasn’t too bad.
The NHS were very efficient. An oximeter was delivered to the house on the day I reported a positive test and I received a text every morning asking for a reading. The instruction was to phone 111 if it went below 95. It went down to 95 but no lower.

People NOT having the covid jab will allow the disease, which is still very much out there among us, a chance to become more prevalent again. I think we owe it to each other to keep on with the vaccinations. Who would want to go back to the dreadful isolation of lockdown or having to wear masks wherever we go?

I am CEV and will continue to have mine. I always have side effects, some quite severe from any type of vaccination, but better than that than probably dying from Covid.

I have a friend who is very ill just now with Covid, I dread to think how ill she would have been without the vaccinations.

A close friend and our WI President have both had Covid in the last month. I’m grateful to have the jab 👍

I'm not having any more covid jabs, I've had 3 so far and have had covid twice. I'll still have the flu jab.

At 76, I have kept up to date with my Covid jabs. Like others on here, I have a couple of days feeling a bit poorly. My family all tell me not to bother but the reason I do is because a friend of mine has had Long Covid for almost 2 years. This poor lady was fit and active but now looks years older than she is, has problems getting out and about on her own and has suffered constantly with some very unpleasant symptoms. I prefer not to take a chance.

I have had all the vaccinations of all kinds and will continue to do so.

I did get COVID, but very mildly. However I have not had shingles nor the illness the pneumo jab protects me from, nor TB or diptheria.

However both my childrenhad very mild whooping cough despite the jab and one had 3 dy measles, but considering that a friend has suffered life long lung damage from whooping cough and my sister nearly died of the same disease, before the vaccination was introduced. I will stick to having any and every vaccination, they are less damging than the alternative.

I had my booster three weeks ago and became poorly within 48 hours, I tested positive and developed covid for the first time. I was really quite poorly so dread to think what would have happened if I wasn't vaccinated.