theZoomer: Is a Covid Surge Coming Amid Vaccine Fatigue, as Health Canada approves new booster?

Intro well welcome back Health Canada has given the green light to moderna's updated covid-19 vaccine for everyone ages six months and up while two more choices for fall vaccinations from Pfizer and novavax are still being reviewed now the MRNA based shot focuses specifically on the Omicron xbb-15 sub-variant making it better matched to the strains we're seeing now so the big question is when can provinces expect deliveries to start DR gorfinkel I'm super excited we're expecting it by mid-october okay so When will the vaccine be available different places are different first priority is always long-term care because we know four out of five most that's where they happened you know in long-term care institutions so what after that it's going to be available in chronic care it's going to be available to hospitals it'll be rolled out to Pharmacists and to family doctors like me but it's going to take some time and that is based on the individual Pharmacy and family doctor but we expected around mid-october and these can be co-administered Dr perzata I'll get you to speculate on what kind of uptake you expect from this because we have seen a bit of vaccine fatigue you know I hope it's more than the flu shot like we are already seeing in the emergency room increasing numbers of people testing positive uh with covid usually we hadn't honestly haven't seen many positives for the last six months but just in the last couple of weeks it's increasing so I really think they should have accelerated the rollout of these variant vaccines especially with school like the school children seem to meet a main Vector in which families are getting infected I really think they need to speed this up as soon as possible and people should go out and get it this this vaccine update is very well matched to the circulating variants it will really prevent a lot of sickness if people take it all right let's get to Why is it called a booster shot back to some of the audience questions here's an email question from Greg and here's what he writes why isn't the most recent updated coveted shot called a booster shot why is it called the updated covid vaccine Dr Weisman well it is effectively a booster shot for those individuals who've already received prior vaccinations with coveted vaccines for an individual who's never received a coveted vaccine it would just be the first series for them but large chunks of the population have already received it it's important to recognize that although this vaccine matches the current variant well that throughout the next six months it's very likely we're going to see a different variant so although it's important that we vaccinate the most vulnerable individuals in society including those over the age of 65. it's just important also to recognize that there is limitations in its ability to prevent disease and also prevent transmission and likely we're going to need to develop additional vaccines in the future to match future strains of the Vex of the virus all right let's get to What to do if you test positive the next question from our very own voxbox here in Liberty Village from Patrick go ahead hey there I have a question what happens if I test positive for covid and how long should I wait before I get another booster or just to get a covet shot there's varying advice on this but what say you okay so um if someone tests positive and you know they have an illness let's say cancer treatment they're older vulnerable or have vulnerable people at home I'll recommend that they pop over to the pharmacy and get antivirals and in Ontario is unique in which the pharmacist can give you antivirals prescribe antivirals without needing to see a physician so and they reduce especially if you're in a high-risk group your chance of death and hospitalization 90 and these are being underused even Physicians aren't prescribing it as much as they should and it's a great tool the second thing I would do if you're sick is don't go to work don't don't go to school put a mask on if you have to go in public and try to protect your family by keeping a mask on at home opening your windows get filters in your bedroom that way you can prevent it from going on to your family let me just ask you very quickly is there a cost associated with the antiviral no it's covered by the When can I get the new Covid vaccine government okay all right good to know all right the next question from Kevin hi there how am I at the beginning of June will I be able to get this new covid vaccine when it's available do I have to wait why do I have to wait can I just go and get it like I want to be safe um help me out thanks cool so this is a more specific question around timing Dr korfinkel yeah this is not a one size fits all so if I'm seeing an individual and they're high risk say they're over 60 with comorbidities say they're over 18 they're immune suppressed these are individuals that I would encourage to get the new moderna vaccine as soon as possible never mind the six-month guideline guidelines are just that if somebody's totally healthy and has no risk factors even those individuals are at some risk of transmitting the disease vaccination Remains the best protection we have one of the best ones we certainly can't rely on our neighbors masking in airports we don't see that we see crowds and throngs of people not wearing masks and transmission Galore but between transmission and vaccination how long should people wait anywhere so the company's own research looked at Patients within one month one month so you could in theory you could get it right away there's no harm to getting it sooner the harm comes in getting it later so understand it's going to take a minimum of two weeks for our body just to build up the immune response in order to fight these diseases whether it's covered flu or RSV so you've got to Are rapid test kits still good build that in sooner was better all right the next question from Angelo I have rapid test kits at home but they have expired I've heard they might still be good is it true and if so are older rapid test kits able to detect this new variant of kovid Drew so there have been extensions to a lot of the expiry dates on covet tests over time you can actually access this on a health Canada website that tells you exactly which kit you have which Lot number what the expiry does date is and the extended shelf life on it as well and I leave it to the other panel members but I believe they are still as effective in being able to determine uh infection so what's with the expiry date then why would you put an expiry date on a just like any other product there's a shelf life that is dependent on the various components of the kit and what is able to stay stable and or free of bacteria and germs for that time period oftentimes these are done on you know sort of studies that have determined that there's a rough estimate of when it should be you know no longer any good but a lot of times with continued monitoring after the fact we find that they're still very good well after the expiry date or shelf life Health Canada has approved the extension of of the shelf life of one of the most commonly tested common tests used by one full year so understand there's a lot of latitude there if the test is positive it's positive if the test is negative it should be repeated within two days and then repeat it again a second time within two days negative tests you can never take as negative tests positive tests are positive Dr gorfinkel very quickly because we are short on time but give us a quick demonstration of the appropriate way to test five by five rule so swap five Aerials gums each for five seconds the back of the throat that's a toughie five seconds and each of the nostrils for five seconds so you've got five by five and as I said repeat in two days if negative all right quick break when we return Health Canada has approved the first RSV vaccine for adults to aged 60 and over are you a candidate stick around because we'll have those details next foreign