Rebook your appointment for full protection against the coronavirus variants.
Many people have already gotten their coronavirus vaccine or are in line to do so. While public health officials have accomplished the first great feat towards the end of the pandemic-getting the first dose of vaccine in millions of people-the second is proving to be a bit more difficult. Both the Moderna and Pfizer vaccine require you to get two shots in order to be fully vaccinated. Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine is the only one in mass use right now in the US and Canada that requires just one dose. But people are skipping out
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in late April 2021, about 8% or 5 million of those vaccinated in the US had missed their second dose of Pfizer or Moderna.
What happens if you miss your second dose of coronavirus vaccine? Here’s a look.
How Much Protection You Will Have?
While many people feel they are fully protected against the novel coronavirus after just one shot of the vaccine, this is actually not the case. One dose of Pfizer can be up to 85% effective at protecting you from falling sick with the original strain of COVID-19. That’s admittedly pretty good protection. But the variants are making things trickier. One study found that just a single dose of Pfizer vaccine was only 30% effective against the UK variant. This was in preventing any level of infection from COVID-19. That is actually pretty weak.
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In addition, one dose of Pfizer was only just 54% effective at preventing serious illness. Those who received two doses of this vaccine were found to be 87% protected against infection from the UK variant, however. Furthermore, two doses of this vaccine was 100% effective at preventing people from dying from the UK variant.
The upshot? It really does pay to go that extra mile. Therefore, if you are going to go to the trouble of getting your first vaccine shot, don’t waste the opportunity by skipping out on the second. The variants are ramping up all across the globe. You want to be fully protected, and you need two shots to attain this.
Do I Need to Same Shot Twice?
The answer to this question is in the works. It is always best to get two doses of the same vaccine if you can. This is because this has been studied in humans extensively, and has been proven to be effective. A study being conducted by the Oxford Vaccine Group is now looking into what happens if you get two doses of different coronavirus vaccines. Is this a good thing to do? Experts think that mixing and matching should be safe. What isn’t known is how effective the practice is. Will it provide you with enough protection? Will it give you even better protection?
Because certain vaccines can be in short supply in places around the world, if mixing and matching works, it could be the best route towards protection for some people. The world is awaiting the results of Oxford’s research and Canada is said to be launching its own study on vaccine combinations, soon.
For the moment, if you can, get two of the same dose. This is probably the safest way to go before scientists learn more.
Reschedule Your Appointment
The easiest thing to do if you miss your second dose of vaccine is to call your provider and get a new appointment. You may have genuinely forgotten, or maybe you are afraid of having a stronger reaction the second time around. Perhaps you feel you have all the protection you need against the virus. Your vaccine provider should be able to accommodate your second dose. Give them a shout and make your appointment.
If you have missed out on your second dose of coronavirus vaccine, don’t worry. You have taken the first step. Do your best to schedule a new second appointment. This will protect you best. The future of the pandemic still remains uncertain, and you do not want to end up in the hospital. Stay safe.
photo credits: Yeexin Richelle/Shutterstock.com
