Coronavirus vaccines are the light at the end of a very dark tunnel – a pandemic that resulted in 2 million deaths around the world and more than 420,000 in the US alone.
The good news and the bad news: While the light may be closer as more people are vaccinated, the end of the tunnel is still a long way off – even for those people who have received a vaccine.
According to data published by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 3 million Americans have received two doses of both vaccines since Monday afternoon in the U.S.
It is mainly adults who live or work in long-term care facilities and primary health care workers who have been granted priority access to the vaccine in all states.
Both vaccines take a minimum of two weeks from receiving the second dose for an immune response to build up. The Pfizer / BioNTech PFE,
BNTX,
vaccine offers 95% efficacy, while the Moderna MRNA,
vaccine offers 94% efficacy, late-stage studies show.
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A person who has been vaccinated can still contract coronavirus, although they are more likely to be asymptomatic.
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These efficacy rates for both vaccines mean that “94% will not become seriously ill,” said Dr. William Schaffner, a CDC adviser and infectious disease specialist. “That is very successful.”
With flu shots, he said, “We’re nowhere near that success. Year in year out it is about 45% [effective]. “
Does this mean those 3 million vaccinated Americans can safely return to their pre-COVID life two weeks after getting their second dose?
Not quite.
A person who has been vaccinated can still contract coronavirus, although they are rather asymptomatic, according to preliminary data. Dr. Thomas Russo, chief of infectious diseases at the University of Buffalo in New York, said it’s not yet clear whether those vaccinated people could pass it on to others.
That’s why Russo, who received his second dose of Pfizer vaccine on Jan. 5, said he only feels comfortable dealing with people who have also been fully vaccinated for at least two weeks in unmasked environments.
“I would go to dinner with my vaccinated friends because we are unlikely to be contagious,” he said.
Does the difference in efficacy between the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines matter?
The 0.5% difference in efficacy rates is “meaningless,” said Dr. Gregory Poland, infectious disease expert and director of Mayo Clinic’s Vaccine Research Group in Rochester, Minnesota.
But a possible game changer could be the Johnson & Johnson JNJ,
vaccine expected to be approved by the Food and Drug Administration in emergencies in the coming weeks.
The company is expected to release Phase 3 trial data this week, which will reveal the efficacy of its single-dose vaccine.
Both the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines pose a low risk in terms of dangerous side effects. There were 10 cases of anaphylaxis among the approximately 4 million doses administered between December 21 and January 10, the CDC reported.
Do I have to continue to wear a mask even after I have been fully vaccinated??
Even if you are fully vaccinated, it is important to continue to wear a face mask and keep your distance socially in public settings such as supermarkets, restaurants and transportation where you are likely to encounter more people who have not been vaccinated and who may be infected by you.
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Even if you are fully vaccinated, it is important to continue to wear a face mask and to distance yourself socially in public settings
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Not wearing a mask on elderly relatives and in public places, even if you have been fully vaccinated, “creates insecurity and stress for other people because they don’t know if you have been vaccinated,” Russo told MarketWatch.
If I have been vaccinated, can I eat in restaurants now?
Because diners don’t typically wear masks in restaurants, you or another person are more likely to come into contact with respiratory droplets that can transmit the coronavirus.
Eating outdoors is significantly safer than eating indoors, health experts claim, because virus-containing droplets have more room to spread. It may also be easier to place outdoor tables more than six feet apart.
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“None of us should be there,” Russo said, referring to indoor restaurants
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Russo said he will continue to avoid eating indoors, as he could potentially spread the virus to another person who has not been vaccinated or has only been partially vaccinated.
“None of us should be there,” Russo said, referring to indoor restaurants.
That said, if future studies show that fully vaccinated people can’t transmit the virus, Russo would reconsider indoor dining.
Is it okay to get on a plane?
Domestic return flights were on average 25% cheaper than 2019 last year, according to data from travel site Hopper. But prices are expected to rise later this year as more people are vaccinated, according to some travel experts.
If you’re fully vaccinated, you don’t necessarily have to pass up travel stuff. Russo hasn’t even canceled a cruise trip that he and his wife booked two years ago that is scheduled for the end of August this year.
He would feel comfortable traveling if his wife is also fully vaccinated and everyone else on board had been fully vaccinated and tested before taking off.
However, Poland does not recommend traveling because it can accelerate the spread of the coronavirus. “It’s like fuel on the fire,” he told MarketWatch.
Can I visit my grandparents now that I have been vaccinated?
The coronavirus has taken a disproportionate toll on the elderly, especially those living in long-term care facilities. Their documented vulnerability and susceptibility to contracting and possible death from the coronavirus is the reason why they are given priority access to the vaccine in the US and other parts of the world.
That is why many nursing homes banned visitors during the height of the pandemic and people stopped having personal contact with the elderly. As a result, elderly people experienced an unprecedented degree of social isolation during the pandemic, which has been found to increase the risk of developing dementia.
If you and an older friend or family member are both fully vaccinated, “the benefits of the visit will outweigh the minor risks they could have in developing a serious case of coronavirus,” Russo told MarketWatch.
Likewise, Ashley Ritter, an elderly nurse and postdoctoral fellow at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, said she will be more comfortable visiting her father who is immunocompromised and recently had a kidney transplant once she is fully vaccinated.
She will receive her second dose of the Pfizer vaccine on Tuesday. But Ritter, who also serves as chief clinical officer and vice president of science communications project Dear Pandemic, won’t visit him until he’s also been fully vaccinated for two weeks.
“I haven’t seen him for so many months, so it will be so much more comfort to be in his company,” she said. She and her father still plan on wearing masks around each other to make sure they don’t accidentally infect each other asymptomatically.
Ultimately, a return to normal depends on getting as many people vaccinated as possible, Ritter said. Health workers say a 70% to 80% vaccination rate is close to immunity to the herd, with those who have the vaccine helping to prevent unvaccinated individuals from contracting the virus.