Infectious Disease Expert on Encouraging Loved Ones to Get Vaccinated: 'Our Holidays Will Be a Little Happier'

As the coronavirus pandemic continues, holiday plans for many are meeting increased concern around the developing Omicron variant and a recent increase in case numbers in large portions of the United States.

Experts agree that vaccinations (particularly booster shots) are effective against the Omicron variant, but the country's vaccination rate remains somewhat stagnant. PEOPLE Every Day host Janine Rubenstein spoke with infectious disease expert Dr. William Schaffner to discuss dealing with those stubborn people who still refuse to get vaccinated.

The Vanderbilt University School of Medicine professor explains that, day after day, we are getting further confirmation about the basic safety and effectiveness of these vaccines, particularly for those who have received a booster.

"We know the vaccines work, we know the vaccines are safe," Dr. Schaffner says. "We need to listen to our neighbors and ask them, What are their concerns? Every question has been asked 10,000 times and answered 100,000 times, I think I can provide reassurance and comfort that this is a good thing to do."

That said, he points to a "stubbornly grumpy" portion of the population, as he calls them, who refuse to take part no matter what. "I don't know, short of mandates, what we can do to get those folks vaccinated at this stage," he sighs. "I'm disappointed and frankly a bit frustrated."

Dr. Schaffner points out that coronavirus continues to throw us curve balls, providing new hurdles whenever cases take a significant decline, and new variants are either plateauing the downturn in regions or increasing them in others. As a result, numerous states are reinstating restrictions and mask mandates ahead of potential spikes amid the holiday season.

But it's worth noting that a high percentage of the severe cases are now coming from those who are not vaccinated, serving as continued evidence of their effectiveness. "The vast majority [of serious cases], 95%, are still in people who haven't received the first dose of vaccine," he informs. "If we could just get those folks vaccinated, that would be terrific ... Then beyond that, of course, almost everybody else is by now eligible for a booster. They should get their boosters. If we do all of those things, I think our holidays will be a little happier."

The challenge is that as new variants arise, the science and information surrounding coronavirus continues to evolve. As such, the public has to be flexible about what the future looks like. "The pieces of the puzzle are coming together on a daily fashion," he says of what we're learning about Omicron. "Is it highly contagious? The answer is yes, likely even more contagious than the Delta variant."

Regardless of contagiousness, he says, vaccines should help, especially with the substantial protection of boosters.

When it comes down to the severity of Omicron, Dr. Schaffner adds that data is actually trending in a good direction, appearing to present less severe clinical manifestations. "All the answers aren't in yet, so let's not draw firm conclusions, but so far so good," he says.

With Christmas right around the corner, countless families are going to be getting together for the holidays, especially after the height of pandemic ruined the plans of so many last year. Dr. Schaffner recognizes this and confirms it can be done safely, but it's important to set boundaries. "You have to have some rules of the road: Is everyone coming vaccinated? Is that a requirement? And everybody who's eligible for a booster been boosted?"

The assistance of vaccines can make for a relatively normal holiday season, and even if not everyone is vaccinated, the use of testing can help overcome obstacles. "What we did in our house in Thanksgiving, because we had a couple of people who had underlying illnesses that made them much more likely to get severe disease, we all had a rapid test that morning," Dr. Schaffner says. "We all took the rapid test, we were all negative, then we all got together at Thanksgiving, vaccinated, boosted, tested negative. We took off our masks and had a wonderful time."

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