Vaccination Efforts Ramp Up as Pandemic Worsens
By Amy Lynn Sorrel

With COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations surging again across the state, Texas Medical Association leaders continue to reiterate that the most important step to getting the pandemic under control is getting people vaccinated. 

That message was reinforced by state and federal public health officials in attendance at a roundtable discussion hosted by TMA last week aimed at identifying best practices and continued support for physicians administering COVID-19 vaccines. 

According to the latest Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) data, COVID-19 hospitalization and case numbers in Texas are at crisis levels. Health officials pointed to a combination of factors at play, namely the recent spread of the highly transmissible delta variant and the fact that roughly 45% of Texans are still not fully vaccinated. 

Amid the surge, Gov. Greg Abbott announced his latest mitigation efforts, calling on hospitals to voluntarily postpone elective medical procedures and bringing in out-of-state medical personnel where needed. He also directed the Texas Division of Emergency Management and Department of State Health Services to open additional monoclonal antibody infusion centers and increase vaccination availability. 

Now that COVID-19 vaccines are available to anyone aged 12 and older, TMA leaders continue to strongly recommend the COVID-19 vaccination for all Texans who are eligible to receive it. 

“This is a very unique time in American history. Due to the dire health consequences of COVID-19, we must take every step we can to save Texans’ lives,” TMA President E. Linda Villarreal said. 

Vaccinations are the key to preventing the spread of COVID-19, preventing additional stress on the health care system, and preventing care delays, adds TMA President-Elect Gary Floyd, MD.

During his visit to TMA, the Biden administration’s vaccinations coordinator, Bechara Choucair, MD, said, “We are so grateful for everyone who rolled up their sleeves and got so many shots in so many arms. But the fact remains, we still have tens of millions of people who remain vulnerable and unvaccinated.” 

That, combined with the delta variant, is “a recipe for a spike,” he said. “The reality is we still have a lot of work to do. This pandemic is not over.” 

Also during the roundtable, DSHS Commissioner John Hellerstedt, MD, highlighted what he described as a “very sharp spike [in Texas] primarily due to the aggressive nature of the delta variant, which is far more contagious. We are very concerned.” 

As the state continues to monitor hospital staffing and capacity, “the next several weeks will be a critical period. Vaccines play an extremely important role in that,” he said. 

A large part of that effort includes ensuring those who’ve received their first dose get fully vaccinated with their second dose, Dr. Hellerstedt emphasized. 

About 64% of the Texas population over the age of 12 have received one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine; 54% are fully vaccinated, according to this week’s DSHS figures. 

Dr. Choucair said the federal government’s three-pronged strategy includes making vaccine access as easy and convenient as possible; supporting strained health systems; and ensuring equitable access to vaccines. He also assured physicians that federal public health officials are continually tracking and studying the need for COVID-19 boosters, case severity among children, and breakthrough infections among the vaccinated, as well as working on full Food and Drug Administration approval of existing COVID-19 vaccines. 

Especially with kids heading back to school, Dr. Choucair commended pediatricians for “stepping up” to vaccinate entire families and hold clinics at schools and other accessible locations. 

TMA, the Texas Public Health Coalition, and the Texas Pediatric Society also have urged use of multiple tools available to protect children and their families from surging COVID-19 infections. In addition to vaccination, but particularly for those unable to get vaccinated, TMA officials stress the importance of the same proven strategies physicians have urged since the outset of the pandemic, namely masking, social distancing, handwashing, quarantining when exposed, and appropriately isolating if sick.          

“Let’s face it; if we don’t take action, the more infectious COVID-19 delta variant will spread among students when they gather together in schools,” Dr. Villarreal said, pointing to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommendations and American Academy of Pediatrics guidelines. 

TMA also "supports the goals of any health care organization that chooses to require vaccinations to protect its vulnerable patients," she added.

In his most recent executive order, Governor Abbott stated that, while voluntary, “receiving a COVID-19 vaccine under an emergency use authorization … is strongly encouraged for those eligible to receive one,” and that “state and local officials should continue to use every reasonable means to make the COVID-19 vaccine available for any eligible person who chooses to receive it.”

Governor Abbott’s order also says, “Texans are strongly encouraged as a matter of personal responsibility to consistently follow good hygiene, social distancing, and other mitigation practices.”

Dr. Choucair emphasized that “the next several weeks is really a period of crisis. To get to the other side – and we will – the imperative thing is more vaccine.” 

To help increase awareness about the importance of vaccines, check out the latest materials available from TMA’s Vaccines Defend What Matters campaign, including this new shareable video reminding Texans why it's important to get all of their vaccinations. 

And to help you answer your patients’ questions about COVID-19 vaccines, check out these fact sheets for adults and adolescents, as well as other resources available in TMA’s COVID-19 Resource Center. Read Texas Medicine Today for more tips and information.

Last Updated On

August 17, 2021

Originally Published On

August 10, 2021

Amy Lynn Sorrel

Associate Vice President, Editorial Strategy & Programming
Division of Communications and Marketing

(512) 370-1384
Amy Sorrel

Amy Lynn Sorrel has covered health care policy for nearly 20 years. She got her start in Chicago after earning her master’s degree in journalism from Northwestern University and went on to cover health care as an award-winning writer for the American Medical Association, and as an associate editor and managing editor at TMA. Amy is also passionate about health in general as a cancer survivor, avid athlete, traveler, and cook. She grew up in California and now lives in Austin with her Aggie husband and daughter.

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