Have you been vaccinated? Experts recommend that you still wear a mask and social distance

Hundreds of thousands of Coloradans received the COVID-19 vaccine on February 12 and are probably wondering what they can do safely.

The answer, health experts say, is to keep wearing a mask and do away with social distractions.

People may think they are invincible with the vaccinations, but until 70% to 80% of the people are vaccinated, the risk of spreading coronavirus remains, including the chance of exposure to others, says Michelle Barron, senior medical director of prevention of infections for UCHealth. .

While the state said this week that about half of the people aged 70 and older were vaccinated, and about 27,000 in the age group 65-69 years old, the vast majority of Coloradans were not vaccinated. Medical professionals are still unclear whether people who have been vaccinated are protected against the spread of the disease. In addition, individuals younger than 16 cannot be vaccinated.

“We have this whole group of people who do not yet have a vaccine available,” said Lisa Miller, professor of epidemiology at the Colorado School of Public Health at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. “We really want to focus on protecting as many people as possible from serious diseases.”

However, it will take a long time before there is a vaccine for everyone, she said.

Angela Shen, a visiting research scientist at the Vaccine Education Center at Philadelphia Children’s Hospital, discovered in less than a year of the discovery of a brand new virus after two – almost three safe – effective vaccines were under emergency use. . It usually takes 15-20 years to develop a vaccine, she said.

The two vaccines from Moderna and Pfizer that are currently needed require two doses. The first dose of Moderna will increase an individual’s effectiveness in preventing symptomatic COVID-19 to 70%, followed by Pfizer at about 55%, Barron said.

The second dose of Moderna is taken 28 days after the initial uptake, and when it is fully 94.1% effective, Barron said, and Pfizer’s second dose takes place 21 days later, with an effectiveness of 95%.

And the new variant is similar to the original coronavirus that the vaccine will work, Barron said. She explained it’s like changing your hair color: ‘If your hair is black one day and blue the next, it’s still you, but it looks a little different.’

However, the vaccine does not fully protect you, Barron said, comparing the vaccine to Kevlar.

“It helps protect you where it has access, but of course you are not covered from head to toe, you are still running a risk,” she said. “Once you have your vaccine, your risk of getting it will be much lower, but it is not zero.”

Miller understands people’s frustration at not being able to return to normal even after they have been vaccinated, but they need to find comfort in being protected from illness. While people may meet with the vaccine in theory, there will be people outside the circle you are dealing with, Shen said.

“Here’s collectivism,” Shen said. “You sit in it with everyone around you, whether you like them or not. We do not walk without risk. ”