State health officials, medical professionals, address COVID 19 vaccine concerns

State Epidemiologist Dr. Paul Byers says there’s an uptick in coronavirus cases in Mississippi with many of them attributed to the U.K. variant.  He says the variant is more easily transmitted and more deadly.

“And we have now identified almost 300 cases.  And these are individuals who are not traveling. They’re not going to other parts of the U.S.  They’re people who likely caught the infection and likely caught that variant strain in Mississippi,” said Byers. 

Byers says the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines work well in preventing hospitalizations and death.  He took part in a virtual seminar with other medical professionals to address vaccine concerns.  Nurse Practitioner, Candance Childress with a Jackson clinic said last year her husband contracted COVID 19.  She says he was hospitalized for 25 days, placed on a ventilator, had 10 toes amputated and was rehabbed at two centers. 

“Forty year old male. No prior health illnesses. He exercised.  He ate right. He was not overweight.  He was not obese.  He didn’t drink any of those things.  But the illness was still as severe as it was for him,” said Childress.

Childress urged listeners not to take coronavirus lightly and get vaccinated.  Doctors also talked about the increase in young people getting infected and said 16 to 18 year olds should get the Pfizer vaccine.  The African American Sorority Alpha Kappa Alpha sponsored the event.