Hello and welcome to the Osterholm Update, a podcast on COVID-19 and other infectious diseases with Dr. Michael Osterholm.

Dr. Ostrome is an internationally recognized medical detective and director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy, or CIDRAP, at the University of Minnesota. In this podcast, Dr. O. Strom

draws on nearly 50 years of experience investigating infectious disease outbreaks to provide

straight talk on the latest infectious disease and public health threats. I'm Chris Dahl,

reporter for CidWap News, and I'm Chris Dahl, reporter for Sidrap News,

and I'm your host for these conversations. Welcome back, everyone, to another episode of

the Osterholm Update podcast. If you're a person who's interested in getting an updated COVID-19

shot and you're a little confused about whether or not you can,

you're not alone. On August 27th, the Food and Drug Administration approved the updated shots

for everyone aged 65 and over and for those under 65 with underlying health conditions that

put them at risk for severe illness, a more limited approval than we've previously seen for

COVID vaccines.

But that's just part of the story.

In some states, pharmacists can't give vaccines to people until they've been recommended by the advisory committee on immunization practices, which meets today and tomorrow.

At this point, it's unclear what the ACIP will recommend.

It's possible the recommendations could be even more limited.

And if you're under 65 and don't have underlying health conditions,

it's unclear if an off-label prescription from your doctor will be enough for your insurer to cover the shot.

At this point, there are a lot of questions,

and we're going to try to fill you in on what we know and don't know on the September 18th episode

of the podcast. We'll also provide a preview of the upcoming ACIP meeting, discuss the ongoing

upheaval at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, provide updates on COVID-19 and measles,

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