Coronavirus vaccinations are the light at the end of a very dark tunnel – a pandemic that has led to 2 million deaths worldwide and more than 420,000 in the US alone.
The good news and the bad news: While the light may be getting closer as more people are vaccinated, the end of the tunnel is still a long way off – even for people who have been vaccinated.
In the U.S., more than 3 million Americans received two doses of any vaccine, according to data released Monday afternoon by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
It is mainly adults living or working in long-term care institutions and front-line health workers who have received priority access to the vaccine in all states.
Both vaccines take at least two weeks from receiving the second dose to build up an immune response. The Pfizer / BioNTech PFE,
BNTX,
vaccine offers 95% efficiency while the Modern MRNA,
vaccine offers 94% efficacy, according to late-stage trials.
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A person who has been vaccinated still has the ability to contract coronavirus, although they are likely to be asymptomatic.
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This effectiveness rate for both vaccines means that there will be ‘94% who do not become seriously ill ‘, says dr. William Schaffner, a CDC consultant and infectious disease specialist. “It’s very successful.”
With flu shots, he said, “We are nowhere near that success. Year in and year out it is about 45% [effective]. ”
Does this mean that the 3 million vaccinated Americans can return safely to live their pre-COVID lives two weeks after receiving their second dose?
Not quite.
A person who has been vaccinated still has the ability to contract coronavirus, although according to preliminary data it is probably asymptomatic. Dr Thomas Russo, head of infectious diseases at Buffalo University in New York, said it was not yet clear whether the vaccinated people would be able to transmit it to others.
Therefore, Russo, who received his second dose of Pfizer vaccine on January 5, said he is only comfortable communicating with people who have also been fully vaccinated in at least two weeks in non-masked environments.
“I would go to a dinner party with my vaccinated friends because the likelihood of us being contagious is small,” he said.
Does the effectiveness rate between the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines matter?
The 0.5% difference in effectiveness is “insignificant”, said Dr Gregory Poland, an infectious disease expert and director of the Vaccine Research Group at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.
But a possible game changer could be the Johnson & Johnson JNJ,
vaccine that is expected to receive approval for the use of emergency permits by the Food and Drug Administration in the coming weeks.
The company is expected to release Phase 3 trial data this week, which will show the efficacy rate of its single-dose vaccine.
Both Pfizer and Moderna vaccines have a low risk of dangerous side effects. There were ten cases of anaphylaxis among the approximately 4 million doses administered between December 21 and January 10, the CDC reports.
Should I continue to wear a mask even after I have been fully vaccinated??
Even if you are fully vaccinated, it is important to continue to wear a face mask and distance yourself socially in public institutions such as supermarkets, restaurants and transportation, where you are likely to encounter more people who have not yet been vaccinated and possibly gain. infected by you.
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Even if you are fully vaccinated, it is important to keep wearing a face mask and practice social distance in the public environment.
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“If you do not wear a mask with older family members and in public places, even if you are fully vaccinated, it creates uncertainty and tension for other individuals because they do not know if you have been vaccinated,” Russo told MarketWatch.
Can I now eat inside restaurants if I have been vaccinated?
Since eaters usually do not wear masks in restaurants, you or another person are more likely to come in contact with coronavirus-containing respiratory droplets.
Outdoor meals are significantly safer than indoor meals, health experts claim, because drops with viruses have more distribution space. It may also be easier to space tables more than six feet outside.
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“None of us should be there,” Russo said, referring to indoor restaurants
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Russo said he would continue to avoid indoor eateries because he could possibly spread the virus to another person who has not been vaccinated, or has only been partially vaccinated.
“None of us can be there,” Russo said, referring to indoor restaurants.
That said, if future studies show that people who have not been vaccinated can not transmit the virus, Russo will reconsider indoor dining.
Is it OK to get on a plane?
According to data from travel website Hopper, domestic flights were on average 25% cheaper last year than 2019. According to some travel experts, prices are expected to rise later this year as more people are vaccinated.
If you are fully vaccinated, you do not need to give up travel stems. In fact, Russo did not cancel a cruise trip he and his wife booked two years ago, which was to take place at the end of August this year.
He will feel comfortable traveling if his wife is also fully vaccinated and all the others on board were fully vaccinated and tested before leaving.
However, Poland recommends traveling because it can speed up the spread of coronavirus. “It’s like fuel on fire,” he told MarketWatch.
Can I visit my grandparents now that I have been vaccinated?
Coronavirus has exaggerated the demands of the elderly, especially those living in long-term care facilities. Their documented vulnerability and susceptibility to contracting and possibly dying from coronavirus is the reason they gain priority access to the vaccine in the US and other parts of the world.
Therefore, many nursing homes banned visitors during the height of the pandemic and people stopped communicating in person with the elderly. As a result, the elderly experienced unprecedented levels of social isolation throughout the pandemic, increasing the risk of dementia.
“If you and an older friend or family member are both fully vaccinated, the benefits of the visit will outweigh the small risks they may have in developing a serious case of coronavirus,” Russo told MarketWatch.
Ashley Ritter, a geriatric nurse and postdoctoral fellow at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, said she would be more comfortable visiting her father, who is immunocompromised and recently had a kidney transplant once she was fully vaccinated.
She will receive her second dose of Pfizer vaccine on Tuesday. But Ritter, who also serves as clinical chief and vice president of the scientific communication project Dear Pandemic, will first visit him before he has also been fully vaccinated for two weeks.
“I haven’t seen him in so many months, so there will be so much more comfort in his company,” she said. She and her father still plan to wear masks around each other to make sure they do not accidentally infect each other.
Ultimately, the return to normal hinges is by getting as many people vaccinated as possible, Ritter said. Health workers say a vaccination rate of 70% to 80% will be close to the immunity of herds, where those who have the vaccine help prevent those who are not vaccinated from contracting the virus.