Eager COVID and flu vaccine recipients at Freeport mobile vaccine clinic
Valerie Lawson, 68 of Freeport, gets a COVID-19 shot by nurse practitioner Rima Patel of Mount Sinai South Nassau on Thursday in Freeport. Credit: Debbie Egan-Chin
The recent swirl of controversy and confusion surrounding the updated COVID-19 vaccine did not deter 79-year-old Robert Kirk, of Freeport, from getting his shot on Thursday.
"I get it every year," said Kirk, who walked into the Freeport Library after seeing the Mount Sinai South Nassau Vaxmobile parked in the back lot.
This is the first year federal health officials did not recommend the COVID-19 vaccine for everyone over the age of 6 months. The lack of clarity in the guidelines led to initial delays for some people looking to get the shot shortly after it was approved at the end of August. As a result, New York State took steps intended to make the vaccine accessible to anyone in the state who wants it.
A growing sentiment of vaccine hesitancy across the United States contributed to only about 23% of adults getting the shot between September 2024 and April, according to the latest data available by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About 13% of children got the vaccination during that same time period.
Kirk’s age puts him in a population that is highly encouraged to get the updated COVID-19 shot, including under the Trump administration. But he said many friends and acquaintances are not interested, concerned about feeling sick after getting a shot.
"I get reactions, but so what?" he said. "Some people who didn’t want it ended up [sick] in tents in the hospital back in 2021."
Community health workers on the Vaxmobile offer people both influenza and updated COVID-19 vaccinations at the library. It makes stops at different locations throughout respiratory virus season, which runs roughly from October through April. That is the period when people are most susceptible to illnesses such as influenza, COVID-19 and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). They have administered more than 17,000 vaccinations since 2021.
"The importance of getting the flu vaccine has not changed," said Dr. Aaron Glatt, chief of infectious diseases at Mount Sinai South Nassau hospital in Oceanside, who also got his flu shot at the library event. "Flu is a major cause of illness and major cause of death in the United States."
He said while not everyone needs to get a COVID-19 vaccination, everyone 6 months and older is still recommended to get a flu shot every year.
"We are at a point right now that is far different from 2020," Glatt said, referring to the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Getting the COVID shot " is an individual decision people should discuss with their doctors."
Joan Wolfe, an 82-year-old library aide, got her flu shot on Thursday.
"I think it’s silly not to go ahead and do it," she said. "I’ve been doing it for years and it seems to be helping."
Abigail Fromm, a registered nurse and director of community education at Mount Sinai South Nassau, said having a mobile vaccination center allows them to engage with people throughout the community and answer their questions about vaccines and health care.
"They worry that they will get sick because of what they hear from friends and read on social media platforms," Fromm said. "We clarify those concerns and reassure them ... explaining it to them in a clinical and evidence-based way I think makes them more comfortable."
Vaccine hesitancy has also caused national flu vaccinations to drop in recent years.
Glatt pointed out that 30,000 to 40,000 people die from the flu every year across the nation, including 150-200 children.
"We have seen people who in the past have taken the flu vaccine and are more hesitant now," he said. "It's a very important vaccine for people to take."
Lisa joined Newsday as a staff writer in 2019. She previously worked at amNewYork, the New York Daily News and the Asbury Park Press covering politics, government and general assignment.
