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Six days after an ER nurse was vaccinated for COVID-19 in San Diego, he became ill and tested positive for the coronavirus. But while the story may sound worrying, health authorities say such cases are to be expected and there is no reason to panic. The 45-year-old received the Pfizer vaccine, which requires two doses three weeks apart on December 18, and is starting to feel sick on Christmas Eve. There is more than one possible explanation, ABC News reports: He may have already been infected when he was vaccinated, as the incubation period could last up to two weeks, or he could have been infected after receiving the shot.
“We know from clinical trials that it takes about 10 to 14 days before you start developing protection against the vaccine,” says an infectious disease specialist. And after the first dose it is estimated that the protection will reach about 50% – it can rise to 95% after the second dose. The specialist adds that he knows of other health workers who became infected by the time they were vaccinated. As for the nurse in question, 10 News reports that his symptoms peaked at Christmas and he tested positive at a test site the next day; he says he has been feeling better ever since, but is still experiencing fatigue. (Read more coronavirus stories.)