When looking at COVID vaccine uptake, why do some people think that COVID vaccine uptake will be eliminated soon?
The usual suspects…
COVID Vaccine Uptake With Projected Points
This time, we have Mary Talley Bowden saying that COVID vaccine uptake will soon be eliminated.
What does that mean?
She thinks that in a few years, no one will want to get an updated COVID vaccine!
And that is, of course, silly, as COVID is not going away and there are plenty of high-risk people who will continue to need updated COVID vaccines when they become available.
In fact, as combined COVID and flu vaccines eventually become available in a few years, it is projected that COVID vaccine uptake will actually increase a bit!
So no, COVID vaccine uptake is not going to disappear.
Not unless COVID disappears…
The Texas Medical Board formally disciplined Bowden on October 17, 2025. The punishment was a public reprimand. Importantly, her medical license was not suspended or revoked, and the reprimand did not carry a fine. The Board denied her request for rehearing on December 12, 2025, making the order final.
The case arose primarily from Bowden's actions involving a critically ill COVID-19 patient at Texas Health Huguley Hospital in Fort Worth in 2021. Bowden prescribed ivermectin even though she did not have privileges at that hospital. After litigation over whether she could administer the drug, a nurse working under Bowden went to the hospital to administer it; hospital personnel refused entry and ultimately called police. Administrative law judges concluded that Bowden had engaged in unprofessional/disruptive conduct and interfered with patient care.
So, in practical terms, her sanction was:
Public reprimand
No license suspension
No license revocation
No monetary fine
The disciplinary action became part of her permanent public TMB disciplinary record.
There is an important subsequent development: Bowden sued the Texas Medical Board in January 2026 seeking to overturn the reprimand, and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton intervened on her side in February 2026, alleging that the Board acted improperly. The TMB strongly disputes that characterization and says it will defend the disciplinary action.