With new COVID variant on horizon, low vaccination rates and stark disparities could make for a ‘miserable winter’

Vaccination rates have bottomed out just as some experts predict a COVID surge over the holidays. The JN.1 variant, which has triggered steep increases in waste water levels across Europe and is now becoming dominant in the United States, has developed mutations that make it more transmissible or better able to evade defenses, said Dr. Dan Barouch, director of the Center for Virology and Vaccine Research at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. Since more people will be infected, COVID-19 related deaths will inevitably rise. Yet the new boosters are a good match for the variant, making it especially important that those most at risk get the shot. Read Full Article…