ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The FDA’s approval of new COVID-19 vaccine boosters coincides with a sharp rise in the number of cases and hospitalizations being seen across Florida.
A quick glance at the CDC's national map shows 2/3 of Florida in the yellow, while most of the country is still green.
That indicates moderate levels of COVID infection and an increase in hospitalizations and 43 of Florida's 67 counties are in the moderate category, which is more than any other state.
“This is something totally new,” Doctor Jill Roberts with USF Public Health said of the new booster. “There is good data that shows it is active against, which means it makes neutralizing antibody against the strains that are currently circulating.”
Roberts says Florida has often led the way when it comes to COVID spikes, and it looks like this time is no different.
“We have the dubious honor of being a tourist location,” she said. “And so, whatever it is, wherever it's coming from, whether it be another country or another state, it comes to us.”
In the Tampa Bay area, new cases per 100,000 people range from about 12 in Citrus and Manatee counties to nearly 19 in Sarasota County.
Hospital admissions are also increasing, up between about 15% in many counties and as high as 28% in Sarasota County.
“The better course of action is to air on the side of caution and actually take the vaccine,” said Roberts.
The vaccine is the FDA's newly approved COVID booster, which Roberts recommends for anyone who hasn't had a shot or COVID itself in the past six months.
It’s likely already being shipped and will be widely available this week, she said.
For most, symptoms from the latest variant are still mild.
The booster, say doctors, will help prevent more severe illness and death.
As for those old test kits you might still have sitting around?
“They thankfully have a built-in way to tell you they don't work. And that is the control line doesn't work,” said Roberts. “And so, if your control line fails to come up on your test, then you should just throw them in the trash.”
Roberts says this latest booster targets a strain of COVID that wasn't in the original doses. She says researchers are working on technology that will produce a more proactive vaccine that could predict which strains are most likely to take hold.