Mississippi is already recommending boosters for vulnerable people

Mississippi is encouraging COVID-19 booster shots for certain high-risk groups, as one of the least-vaccinated states in the country faces an onslaught from the delta variant of the coronavirus.

According to a memo from the state department of health, physicians should consider giving a booster dose of a COVID-19 vaccine to anyone who is immunocompromised, including organ transplant recipients, people taking immunosuppressive drugs, and people with underlying medical conditions such as chronic kidney disease.

While the overwhelming majority of cases, hospitalizations and deaths in Mississippi are among unvaccinated individuals, the number of deaths among fully vaccinated people has been increasing.

Paul Byers, a physician with the state Department of Health, said in the memo that since April 1, more than 35 vaccine breakthrough deaths have been confirmed. For the deaths where the person’s medical history was known, 58 percent had either a known immunocompromising condition or history of kidney disease.

Guidance: The memo recommends waiting at least four weeks after the final dose of the original vaccination series before administering a booster. It also recommends physicians perform spike protein antibody testing to determine the presence, or absence, of detectable antibodies prior to booster dosing.

If a patient was originally given an mRNA vaccine, either Pfizer or Moderna, the recommendation is to consider using the same manufacturer for the booster dose. If the original vaccine was Johnson & Johnson, the recommendation is to consider using the Pfizer mRNA vaccine.