Alpha. Beta. Delta. Omicron. It's been hard to keep track of the COVID-19 lingo as the viruses evolve and mutate into new variants and strains itching to wreak havoc on our immune systems.
The latest variant, KP.3.1.1, is associated with the latest "FLiRT" variants and accounted for more than a third (31% to 49%) of new cases in the country during the first two weeks of August, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
No matter the name, no one wants to flirt with COVID, which has claimed 1.2 million American lives so far. The number of cases has surged in most states in recent weeks, the CDC reports. And there have been reports of cases emerging among attendees at last week's Democratic National Convention.
In order to keep the numbers down, more people have to take action by doing what health officials have been constantly repeating as our COVID-related vocabulary grows with each new strain: Get vaccinated.
The updated vaccines approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration last week target the KP.2 variant, which is closely related to its cousin, the KP.3.1.1 variant. The hope is the shots will keep those variants and the others that arise in the winter at bay.
As with previous boosters, total immunity isn't guaranteed. But a jab will, as experts keep emphasizing, help prevent serious illness and hospitalization. It is that simple.
Anyone who has a higher risk of getting sick should get the latest vaccine as soon as it's available early next month. Healthier people or those who tested positive for COVID over the summer can wait a bit in order to build protection from variants that will rise up during the winter, some doctors have suggested.
Holding off on the vaccine doesn't mean skipping it all together. Yes, the side effects of the vaccine can be a pain. They still beat missing a big event or canceling an upcoming vacation or worse, infecting an elderly loved one or patient with an underlying illness. Don't blow it off, which most Americans have been doing.
A year before the virus barreled into our lives in 2020, the World Health Organization listed vaccine hesitancy as a top ten threat to global health. Five years later, vaccine hesitancy and vaccine fatigue remain obstacles in slowing down the virus.
Just 28% of adults in the country said they have received the last updated COVID-19 vaccine, which the CDC recommended last fall, a Pew Research Center survey revealed in March.
And even though there was a push to get both the COVID and flu vaccines in one pop, half of the survey respondents who said they got a flu shot passed on the COVID vaccine.
COVID, like the flu, is now part of our lives. There is no denying it.
The good news is that while emergency room visits and COVID-related hospitalizations are up, the number of deaths are tapering off. The federal government will make free COVID virus test kits available by mail in September, which should make it easier for people to test themselves and keep others from falling ill.
Wearing a mask always helps. Staying home is also effective. (But who wants to have a 2020 throw-back, when you can take steps to more safely, as Prince sang, "party like its 1999?")
Before COVID, working from home, social distancing and masking up weren't a thing. The pandemic changed the way we live, even how we talk.
But the first line of defense to keep everyone safe and healthy has remained constant: Do your duty and make an appointment to get vaxxed.
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