By Tim Mastro

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued guidance late Wednesday urging pregnant women to be vaccinated against COVID-19.

The agency said in a health alert it, “strongly recommends COVID-19 vaccination either before or during pregnancy because the benefits of vaccination outweigh known or potential risks.”

A total of 161 pregnant women in the United States have suffered COVID-19-related deaths, according to CDC. August was the worst month of the pandemic for pregnant women with 22 deaths.

The guidance also extends to women trying to become pregnant, as well as those who have recently given birth or who may be breastfeeding. Pregnancy is considered an underlying health condition, which leads to higher risk for complications from COVID-19.

One of these complications, CDC said, is pre-term birth or sick newborns who need to be sent straight to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) while other adverse pregnancy outcomes, such as stillbirth, have been reported.

The agency reported only 31% of pregnant women are fully vaccinated.

More than 125,000 cases of COVID-19 have been reported in pregnant women and 22,000 were hospitalized, according to CDC.

Data from the COVID-19-Associated Hospitalization Surveillance Network indicate approximately 97% of pregnant people hospitalized in 2021, either for illness or for labor and delivery, with confirmed COVID-19 infection were unvaccinated.

For those looking to become pregnant, studies of the vaccine have shown it has no impact on fertility, said Delaware Division of Public Health director Dr. Karyl Rattay.

“Some people are worried the vaccines could impact fertility,” Dr. Rattay said. “There is no evidence whatsoever, nor is it feasible for these vaccines to impact fertility for women and even men of reproductive age. The studies are good. These are the most studied vaccines that we have ever seen in our lifetimes and we’re really pleased with the results on this front.”

Dr. Rattay said Delaware is not tracking the number of women who become pregnant or are pregnant when they receive the vaccine, deferring to CDC and the Food and Drug Administration because the state’s population is too small to provide a large enough sample size for a study.

“We really look to FDA and CDC to do those studies,” Dr. Rattay said. “The good news is since the beginning of vaccine administration a lot of data has come into the databases. Pregnancy and fertility, both areas of concern for women of reproductive age with the vaccine, both issues have been very well studied. We got really strong evidence that shows not only is taking any one of the three vaccines during pregnancy safe with very limited side effects, just like if you were not pregnant, but it is also very protective and really critical for pregnant women to prevent adverse events to pregnancy. Studies are showing that the antibody response travels from the mom to the baby. It helps to protect the baby when the baby is born.”