CLEVELAND, Ohio – Readers have questions about COVID-19 and the coronavirus vaccine, and we’re getting answers from healthcare experts.
Q: Should I continue to wear a mask if I have received the coronavirus vaccine?
The short answer is: yes, vaccinated individuals should continue to wear masks, as it is still possible for them to get COVID-19 and pass it on to others. This is what some local doctors said:
The vaccine does not offer 100% protection against COVID-19. The Moderna vaccine is approximately 94% effective in preventing COVID-19, while the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine is 95% effective, according to published reports.
The vaccination lasts two to four weeks to protect people from the virus., said Dr David Margolius, medical doctor at MetroHealth Systems. During that interval, an immunized person may develop COVID-19.
Immunization people who get COVID-19 and are asymptomatic could possibly spread the virus, said Dr. Daniel Culver, chairman of the department of pulmonary medicine at the Cleveland Clinic.
Asymptomatic distribution of COVID-19 accounts for more than half of all cases of COVID-19, according to new research by the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention.
Nearly 60% of the transmission comes from people without symptoms, according to the base scenario of the model. The percentage includes new cases of people infecting others before they show symptoms, and individuals who never develop symptoms.
The findings of the CDC study highlight why it is important for everyone to wear a mask, keep socially distant and wash their hands regularly, even after vaccination. JAMA Network Open published the findings this month.
Scientists do not know how long the immunity provided by the vaccine will last.
Masks do not offer 100% protection against the coronavirus for the wearer or others around him or her.
Ideally, everyone can stop wearing masks if 80% to 90% of the population is vaccinated, Margolius said. But for now, “the safest thing to wear is a mask,” he said.
Do you have questions about the COVID-19 pandemic that you would like an expert to answer? Email it to Julie Washington, reporter for cleveland.com, at [email protected].