Millions of Americans are vaccinated with the two-dose mRNA COVID-19 vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna, and both options are remarkably effective in protecting the coronavirus. But getting protection from the shots takes time.
If you are receiving the Pfizer vaccine, wait three weeks between your first dose and your second dose, or as close to the interval as possible. If you receive the Moderna vaccine, you will wait four weeks between shots. (And for both, you will only be considered fully vaccinated if two weeks after your second dose has passed.)
What happens in between? Can you get infected with COVID-19? And what do you do about it? This is what you need to know.
Yes, it is definitely possible to get COVID-19 after your first shot.
You may feel excited after receiving the first dose of Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, and this is understandable. The vaccines are considered miraculous because of how fast they are developed, as well as because of how effective they are.
But it takes time for your immune system to start building a response, and experts are still not quite sure exactly how much protection people have after just one shot. Current studies suggest that a single dose of Pfizer or Moderna vaccine is approximately 80% effective in preventing COVID-19 infection approximately two weeks after your first shot.
“It can and can certainly happen,” said Paul Pottinger, an expert on infectious diseases at the University of Washington, referring to the possibility of becoming infected between two doses. “Remember, we even see COVID-19 infections in patients who have been fully immunized, which means it is fine two to five weeks after their second dose of one- or mRNA vaccinations.”
Researchers have known this possibility from the beginning. Pottinger pointed out that the original clinical trials for the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines showed that both were approximately 95% effective in preventing COVID-19 after both shots. Some of the vaccine recipients who eventually became ill during the trials were between their two doses.
“What I would say is if people are worried about catching COVID-19 in the middle of their vaccination process, damn right,” Pottinger added. “They have to worry about this, because they are not protected yet.”
But you have to be really well protected from serious diseases and death.
Healthcare researchers and providers are basically allergic to absolute terms when they talk about anything that has to do with human health and medicine, so you will never hear anyone say 100%. But one shot of the mRNA vaccines seems to be perfect in terms of hospitalization and death.
‘People who received their first dose are dramatic well protected from hospitalization or death, ”Pottinger said.
“In the studies, no one who has been vaccinated dies. It is clear that in the real world we have many, many more people, but they are still very effective in preventing serious illness and death, ”said Valerie Cluzet, an infectious physician and medical director of infection control and antibiotic management at Nuvance. , added. Health.
“This is definitely true after your second dose, but probably also after the first dose,” she noted.
If you are receiving COVID-19 between doses, you should still receive your second dose – but the timeline will probably be different.
No matter what, you still have to plan for your second chance. This is because experts do not really know how long people are protected from getting sick again after recovering from COVID-19, and it is possible, as the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention explains.
However, experts know a little more about how long vaccines protect you. Current evidence suggests that people who receive the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines have at least six months (and count) of robust protection.
That said, if you get COVID-19 between doses, the timing of your second admission may change a bit. First, you should not plan to be vaccinated until you have met the requirements of the CDC to end your isolation. This is partly to keep others safe while you are in quarantine. But it is also about giving your body the best chance of developing a robust immune response.
‘You have to wait until you are the acute illness. “You really want to give your immune system the best chance of responding to the vaccine,” Cluzet said.
You can also choose to temporarily postpone the vaccination while stock is really in demand.
‘CDC said that, as long as you plan to leave the house, you can be vaccinated according to schedule or as close to you, but because it is such a precious resource, the CDC has asked us to delay the second dose 30 days from the onset of symptoms, as it allows other people to be vaccinated … this is thanks to our fellow citizens, ”Pottinger explained.
It is important to continue to keep silent and maintain social distance.
Again, even after you are fully immunized, a breakthrough in vaccines is expected. This is one of the reasons why some recommendations for people who have been fully vaccinated have changed (such as being able to congregate with other vaccinated people without masks), while others do not emerge.
It is still important for everyone to hide and maintain the social distance. If you have been vaccinated, you should still do these things unless you are in a private place with other vaccinated or one other low-risk household. If you have not yet been vaccinated, get the vaccine available to you whenever it is available.
“We are learning more and more that the vaccines also prevent transmission, so not only do you protect yourself, but you also protect others,” Cluzet said. “It’s personal health, but it’s also public health.”