By Daniel Vega
As of today, there have been 2 coronavirus vaccines approved by the FDA for emergency use, the Moderna coronavirus vaccine, and the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine. Both vaccines have been declared safe and effective for adults. A third vaccine by Johnson & Johnson is expected to apply for and gain an FDA emergency use authorization in as little as two weeks. There are many questions about the vaccines, so let’s talk about them as well as how the vaccine rollout is going in the United States.
The Pfizer-BioNTech Vaccine
First, there is the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine. This vaccine was approved on December 11, 2020, by the FDA for emergency use on individuals 16 years of age and older. It has been reported that the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine has a 95% efficacy rate after two doses. The first dose of the Pfizer vaccine offers 52% efficacy and 95% efficacy after the second dose. The Pfizer vaccine is an mRNA vaccine, it is also the first mRNA vaccine to be used. This has raised many concerns among people. However, according to the CDC, an mRNA vaccine is just as effective and safe as a regular vaccine. An mRNA vaccine works differently than most other vaccines, instead of injecting an inactive covid-19 virus into the body to create an immune response and produce antibodies, mRNA vaccines use a messenger RNA or mRNA from a Covid-19 virus that teaches our immune system how to create antibodies against the Covid-19 virus. A few common symptoms for the Pfizer vaccine include a sore arm, tiredness, fatigue, headache, muscle pain, chills, joint pain, and fever. The second dose of the Pfizer vaccine is given 21 days after the first dose, it is known to produce stronger side-effects, which is because your immune system remembers the mRNA of the covid virus and attacks it, this is good and means your immune system is working and you are building immunity.
The Moderna Vaccine
Second, is the Moderna coronavirus vaccine. This vaccine was approved by the FDA for emergency use on December 18, 2020, for the use of individuals 18 and older. The Moderna coronavirus vaccine is reported to have a 94.1% efficacy rate after two doses. The first dose of the Moderna vaccine offers 80.2% efficacy after the first dose and 94.1% efficacy after the second dose. The Moderna vaccine is also an mRNA vaccine, it is only the second mRNA vaccine to be used after the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. Some common side-effects of the Moderna vaccine include sore arm, tiredness, headache, muscle pain, joint pain, chills, swollen lymph nodes, nausea, vomiting, and fever. The second dose of the Moderna vaccine is given 28 days after the first dose, and just like the Pfizer vaccine, causes worse side effects after the second dose than the first dose.
The Johnson & Johnson Vaccine
The Johnson & Johnson covid vaccine has not yet been approved for emergency use by the FDA, however, it is expected to apply for emergency use and be granted emergency use by the FDA in the next couple of weeks. The Johnson & Johnson covid vaccine has shown a 90% efficacy rate, and it is a one dose vaccine which makes it easier to give than the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines. The Johnson & Johnson vaccine is also not an mRNA vaccine, but rather a regular DNA vaccine like the flu vaccine, this means that the concerns about long term effects of mRNA vaccines do not apply to the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
The Covid Vaccine Rollout
The Covid vaccine rollout began on December 14, 2020, with the first shot being given to an ICU nurse from New York. After that thousands of healthcare workers began getting vaccinated. In California, only healthcare workers, individuals 65 and older, and some essential workers including teachers can get the vaccine in select counties. Currently, 20.5 million people have been given a dose of the vaccine. The CDC reported yesterday that 1 million covid vaccines were administered, which sets the U.S. on the right track to meet President Biden’s goal of 100 million covid vaccines administered in 100 days. There have been some bumps in the road during the Covid vaccine rollout. For example, the number of vaccines already distributed was not being counted properly under the Trump administration, which has caused some confusion between states and the federal government about how many more vaccines each state will get. Some states are also saying they are not getting enough vaccines and so are having to close vaccination sites. This, of course, puts the vaccination rollout behind schedule. President Biden has said about the vaccine rollout, “While the vaccine provides so much hope, the rollout has been a dismal failure thus far.” However, President Biden believes that the vaccine rollout is getting back on track and has purchased 200 million more doses of the covid vaccine, and set a goal of 1.5 million vaccines administered per day.
Vaccine Myths
The Covid vaccine has been in the news a lot lately, and because of this there is a lot of disinformation regarding the vaccine, so here are 5 myths about the Covid vaccine.
Myth #1: If you have Covid you do not need a vaccine - This is false, just because you have had Covid doesn’t mean you shouldn’t get the vaccine. The covid vaccine offers more protection and higher antibody levels against Covid than those who have had it, so you should still get a vaccine even if you have had covid.
Myth #2: The Covid Vaccine causes Covid - The Covid vaccine doesn’t cause Covid because a live virus isn’t included in the Covid vaccine but rather the mRNA of the Covid virus.
Myth #3: The Covid Vaccine isn’t safe because it was rushed - Although the long term effects of the vaccine aren’t readily known, both Moderna and Pfizer, as well as numerous other organizations including the FDA have conducted safety tests that have shown that the covid vaccine is safe and effective. Nobody has died from the covid vaccine either, and 69.1 million people have been vaccinated worldwide. The only danger to getting the covid vaccine is having an allergic reaction, which is a danger to getting any vaccine, even the flu vaccine.
Myth #4: If I get the vaccine I can stop wearing my mask and do whatever I want - Even if you get the vaccine you should still take all of the current precautions because the vaccines are 95% effective and you don’t know if you are in the 5% of people the vaccine doesn’t protect.
Myth #5: The vaccine is fake, that is why we have a Covid vaccine in just 1 year, but no cancer vaccine after 50 - This is not true, the covid vaccine is 100% real. The reason why we have developed a covid vaccine in such little time is because the Covid virus is very similar to the virus that causes SARS which has been studied by scientists for nearly 15 years. The reason why there is no cancer vaccine is because most cancers are not caused by viruses and vaccines can only provide immunity for viruses. The few viruses that can cause cancer are also much more complex than the virus the causes Covid and so it is harder to develop an effective vaccine against them.
Now you know. There are 2 covid vaccines, a third vaccine seeking authorization, the vaccine rollout is underway, and there is lots of disinformation regarding the vaccine. Use this information wisely, as Benjamin Franklin said, “An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.”
Citations
MarketWatch.Com https://www.marketwatch.com/story/fauci-says-johnson-johnson-covid-19-vaccine-may-get-approval-in-two-weeks-11611443596
FDA - Pfizer Vaccine https://www.fda.gov/emergency-preparedness-and-response/coronavirus-disease-2019-covid-19/pfizer-biontech-covid-19-vaccine
CDC - Covid Vaccine https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/different-vaccines/mrna.html
FDA - Moderna Vaccine https://www.fda.gov/emergency-preparedness-and-response/coronavirus-disease-2019-covid-19/moderna-covid-19-vaccine#:~:text=On%20December%2018%2C%202020%2C%20the,
CNN - J&J Vaccine https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/25/health/johnson-and-johnson-vaccine-covid-19-next-steps/index.html
Contagionlive.com - J&J Vaccine https://www.contagionlive.com/view/j-j-covid-19-vaccine-shows-90-efficacy-in-interim-data
Thanks for clearing up some of the misconceptions about vaccines! I learned more about the vaccine in this article than from watching the news. Thanks!