ER nurse tests COVID-19 positive eight days after vaccination
- San Diego nurse Matthew W. received the Pfizer vaccine on Dec. 18
- He started feeling sick on Christmas Eve and went to test on December 26
- Matthew tested positive for the coronavirus, but has since started to feel better
- And while it may come as a surprise to many, according to health experts who have weighed the case, it is not unexpected
- Dr Christian Ramers said: ‘This is not unexpected at all. If you work through the numbers, this is exactly what we would expect to happen if someone was exposed. ‘
- Ramers said Matthew could have had the coronavirus before being vaccinated
A California nurse tested positive for COVID-19 eight days after receiving the vaccine.
Nurse Matthew W., received the Pfizer vaccine on Dec. 18, according to a Instagram post.
‘Have my Covid vaccine! Fifteen minutes later, I was sitting with a bunch of other people while health workers asked us how we felt I had to think of an opium hole. I will report back if I start growing a third arm, ‘Matthew wrote.
But on Christmas Eve, Matthew, who works at two different hospitals in San Diego, began to feel sick after working a shift in the COVID-19 unit.
Nurse Matthew W (pictured) received the Pfizer vaccine on Dec. 18, according to a Instagram post
But on Christmas Eve, Matthew, who works at two different hospitals in San Diego, began to feel sick after working a shift in the COVID-19 unit. He said he first got a cold before getting rid of muscle aches and fatigue
He told ABC 10 News that he first got a cold fever before coming down with muscle aches and fatigue.
On December 26, he went to a hospital to be tested for the virus and tested positive.
And while it is surprising, according to health experts who have weighed the case, it is not unexpected.
Dr Christian Ramers, an infectious disease specialist at Family Health Centers in San Diego, told the station: ‘This is not unexpected at all. If you work through the numbers, this is exactly what we would expect to happen if someone were exposed. ‘
Ramers said it is possible that Matthew was infected before receiving the vaccine.
And if Matthew contracted the virus after the vaccination, it’s still in line with what health workers know.
“We know from clinical trials of the vaccine that it will take about 10 to 14 days before you start developing protection against the vaccine,” Ramers said.
Ramers also said he was aware of other cases where health workers had become infected by the time they received the vaccine.
On December 26, Matthew (second from left) went to a hospital to be tested for the virus and tested positive
“The first dose we think gives you about 50%, and you need the second dose to get up to 95%,” Ramers added.
Matthew says he has been feeling better since his symptoms appeared last week.
The Trump administration’s goal of vaccinating the majority of the U.S. population in the first half of next year has been thwarted by the slow implementation of the program, which at the current rate could take nearly ten years to complete, according to ‘ a new report.
Operation Warp Speed officials have promised over the past few months that 20 million Americans would receive the COVID-19 vaccine by the end of 2020 and that 80 percent of the total population would be vaccinated by the end of June.
However, data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that vaccination efforts are moving at a slower pace than necessary, with only 2.1 million Americans will receive their first dose out of the 11.4 million sent earlier this month, starting Monday.
At this rate, it means that more than 3 million people need to be vaccinated daily to NBC News’ analysis of the data Tuesday.
Alternatively, if the vaccination attempts continue at their current rate it will take nearly a decade to vaccinate adequately at 80 percent of the country’s 330.7 million inhabitants by that time, the report shows.