Get the facts about COVID-19 vaccines
Here are the facts you need to know about these vaccines.
The COVID-19 vaccines will help protect you from getting sick. All three vaccines are extremely effective at preventing serious illness, hospitalization, and death, including from the delta variant. Decreasing the number of people with the virus is an important way to reduce spread and end the pandemic. Once you are fully vaccinated, you can start doing many of the activities you had stopped because of the pandemic, although it is important to wear masks in indoor public spaces. Talk to your doctor about questions you may have before getting your shot.
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COVID-19 vaccines are safe
They are effective in:
- Teaching your immune system to recognize and fight off the COVID-19 virus. When your body learns how to fight off infection, this is known as “immunity.”
- Reducing the likelihood of becoming sick with COVID-19, being hospitalized and possibly dying.
How they work
- Vaccines work by triggering your immune system to recognize and fight off the viruses they target. By triggering your immune system to respond to a virus, the vaccine helps your body destroy the virus if you are exposed to COVID-19 in the future. All three available vaccines are extremely effective at preventing serious illness, hospitalization, and death.
- Vaccination requires one or two doses, depending on the type of vaccine you receive. It is important to take the full recommended dosage.
- After you get vaccinated, your body may start experiencing some signs and symptoms that are caused by the vaccine. These are called side effects. Side effects after vaccination are normal and may not happen to everyone who gets the vaccine.
- After you get vaccinated, your body may start experiencing some signs and symptoms that are caused by the vaccine. These are called side effects. Side effects after vaccination are normal and may not happen to everyone who gets the vaccine. These side effects usually do not interfere with what you do every day and may include:
- Arm pain or soreness near the vaccination site
- Mild fever that does not last for a long period of time
- Feeling cold and/or tired
COVID-19 vaccine: Myth vs. fact
Fact: COVID-19 vaccines do not get incorporated into your DNA. COVID-19 vaccines do not change or interact with your DNA in any way.
Fact: Vaccination is still important even if you had COVID-19. Reinfection with COVID-19 is possible. Experts do not know how long immunity will last after a COVID-19 infection, so it is recommended to be vaccinated even if you had COVID-19.
Vaccination is a critical part of our public health response to ending the pandemic. Right now, the data suggest that protection after natural infection may only last 2-3 months in some people. Current data from the vaccine tests also suggests that immunity from the vaccine immunity is stronger and longer lasting.
The only time you should delay vaccination for more than 90 days after having COVID-19 is when you received something called “monoclonal antibodies.” This is a medication given to you that goes directly into your vein with a needle attached to a tube and medication bag.
Fact: The vaccine does not contain a live virus, so it will not give you COVID-19. However, since it takes a few weeks for your body to build protection, it’s possible you could catch the virus after taking the vaccine and get sick before your body creates immunity.
Fact: It is natural to have questions about the speed with which these vaccines were developed. In normal circumstances, vaccines take much longer to develop.
There are two areas that made the COVID-19 vaccine development different: one is that much of the research was already in place before the pandemic because since COVID-19 is part of a group of viruses that scientists had already spent a long time studying.
The other was the amount of cooperation, money, and effort that was shared around the globe in order to create the vaccine.
Scientists were not starting from scratch when they began work on the COVID-19 vaccine.
SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) is a member of the coronavirus family. There are hundreds of coronaviruses. Because scientists had already been studying coronaviruses before the pandemic, this meant they had existing data on the structure, genome, and life cycle of this type of virus before COVID-19 spread across the world.
In the midst of the global pandemic, researchers, scientists, and the medical community mobilized to share data and find solutions with more cooperation and shared effort and available funding than ever before.
In the U.S., Operation Warp Speed (OWS) partnered with multiple institutions, including the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to develop, manufacture, and distribute 300 million doses by early 2021.
A large amount of money was paid to the vaccine companies to start production immediately, so the vaccine supply was available once data showed that the vaccine worked.
Since the FDA approval, the vaccines have been given to millions of people around the globe, and continue to be considered safe and effective.
Fact: COVID-19 can cause serious problems such as mild or severe illness, development of symptoms that become chronic (meaning they never go away), hospitalization and death for people of all ages. There is no way to know how COVID-19 will affect you. If you get sick, you could also spread the virus to friends, family and others around you, which can lead to serious problems for them such as severe illness, hospitalization and death. Once they become sick, COVID-19 continues to spread to others. The vaccine can stop transmission, and will protect you and people around you from getting COVID-19.
Fact: Adults of any age with underlying medical conditions that they’ve had for a while are more likely to get severely sick from COVID-19. The COVID-19 vaccine should be given to everyone, even those with known medical conditions. If you have any questions or concerns about your medical condition, you should speak with your doctor. Questions can also be answered at COVID-19 vaccination locations.
Fact: There is no evidence that the vaccine causes infertility or miscarriage. It has been found safe for women who are planning a pregnancy, pregnant or breastfeeding. Getting vaccinated while pregnant will also protect your baby from COVID-19. You should speak with your doctor if you have any questions or concerns. Questions can also be answered at COVID-19 vaccination locations.
Fact: There is no microchip or any electronic component in the COVID-19 vaccine, or in any other vaccine, that can track you.
