Covid booster is “optimal care”, but the fully vaccinated definition remains, says Fauci

Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, speaks during a press conference in the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington, DC on Wednesday, December 1, 2021.

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Covid booster vaccinations are “optimal care” as the deadly virus continues to mutate and spread, but the US government is sticking to the definition of the fully vaccinated US infectious disease expert for the time being, said Dr. Anthony Fauci on Sunday.

Currently, two doses of the Pfizer BioNTech or Moderna vaccine, or one dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, provide full vaccination. Health officials will continue to consider whether that definition needs to change, Fauci said on ABC’s This Week With George Stephanopoulos.

“I think if you look at the data, it becomes more and more clear that you really should get a booster if you want to be optimally protected,” said Fauci. “It is the optimal care.”

The pressure on booster vaccinations goes hand in hand with the rise in cases of the Omicron coronavirus variant. So far, 25 states have discovered the variant, Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said in a briefing Friday. Officials believe that number will continue to rise.

It’s too early to say the long-term effects of the virus, but initial data suggests that those who contract the Omicron variant may have a mild illness. At-risk patients who are older, unvaccinated or have underlying diseases are at a much higher risk of developing a serious illness, said Maria Van Kerkhove, the World Health Organization’s technical director for Covid-19, in a press conference.

On Sunday, the U.S. neared 800,000 coronavirus-related deaths.

The new variant has pushed some government officials to restore health restrictions to slow the spread. On Monday, New York will implement its nationwide mask mandate, which requires the wearing of protective face coverings in public places and in businesses unless proof of vaccination is required.

“This variant moves fast, we have to move faster,” said New York Mayor Bill de Blasio on Sunday in the “State of the Union” of CNN.