COVID-19 Vaccine News

 

Submitted by Aimee Brown

The Georgia Department of Health (GDPH) recently updated its COVID-19 vaccine eligibility to include the following groups: educators and staff (Pre-K, K-12, DECAL Licensed or exempt childcare programs), adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their caregivers, and parents of children with complex medical conditions.  Eligibility begins March 8, 2021.  It does not appear that librarians or library workers are included with this new directive.

The FDA recently issued emergency use authorization of a third COVID-19 vaccine developed by the Janssen Pharmaceutical companies of Johnson and Johnson.  This is a one-dose vaccine available to individuals 18 years of age and older.  This vaccine is considered a viral vector vaccine.

The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are also approved for emergency use authorization.  Both are two-dose vaccines and are considered mRNA (messenger Ribonucleic Acid) vaccines.  The CDC has a page to help us understand how COVID-19 vaccines work and ABC News created a video.

So far, over 80,540,474 vaccine doses have been administered in the US as of March 3, 2021.  You can follow the latest information on the CDC COVID-19 Data Tracker.

COVID-19 vaccines are being held to the same safety standards as all vaccines.  The FDA, CDC, and HHS will closely monitor vaccine safety and side effects using VAERS (Vaccines Adverse Event Reporting System) and V-Safe, a smart-phone based monitoring system which uses text messaging and web surveys to check in with vaccine recipients after vaccination.  Vaccine recipients will be provided with information on how to participate when they get vaccinated.

Choosing to be vaccinated is an individual decision and you should speak with your medical provider about any concerns you have.  The CDC says that getting vaccinated can help prevent you from getting sick with COVID-19 and is considered a safer way to help build immunity protection and potentially avoid the serious, life-threatening complications of COVID-19.

You may be asking, “What happens after I get vaccinated? When will life get back to normal?”  Unfortunately, the CDC and other health experts don’t know how long protection from having had the virus or from being vaccinated will last.  The CDC is working on guidelines to outline safe activities for people who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19.  It is expected to include recommendations on small gatherings with other fully vaccinated individuals and to include scenarios to consider such as where, with whom, and what to consider when making plans with friends and loved ones.  It should also include an updated section on travel.  Of course, we should expect to continue to wear masks in public and to adhere to other public health measures such as social distancing for the foreseeable future.  Keep an eye on their site for the latest information.