ORLANDO, Fla. — A Centers for Disease Control study found there’s a roughly 20 percent chance of COVID-19 infection between vaccine doses.
They followed nearly 4,000 frontline workers across six states- including Florida- after one dose of an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine and found, while rare, it’s still possible to get infected.
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Nine days had passed since Susan and Edward Beans got their first Pfizer shots when they both tested positive for COVID-19.
“At first I was thinking it was from the shot?” Susan wondered.
A new @CDCMMWR finds mRNA #COVID19 vaccines highly effective in preventing COVID-19 among health care & other essential workers. The mRNA vaccines reduced the risk of infection by 80% after the 1st dose and 90% following the 2nd dose. Learn more: https://t.co/iqB1UvuF05. pic.twitter.com/alDyojp0v1
— CDC (@CDCgov) March 29, 2021
Internal Medicine Specialist Dr. Aftab Khan treated both the Beans. He says the virus’ two to 14 day incubation period makes it difficult to know exactly when an exposure occurs.
So-called “breakthrough” cases that pop up after a dose of a vaccine aren’t tracked by the state, and since vaccines build antibodies right away, having one helps.
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“You can become infected, but you will not die,” Dr. Khan says.
36-year-old mother Bunny Puntel says she’d just received a Johnson and Johnson COVID vaccine when she felt what she thought was a simple cold.
“But they tested me anyway, and when they told me I was positive, I was very shocked.”
New @CDCMMWR outlines interim recommendations from the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices for the Janssen #COVID19 vaccine in people 18 & older. Getting a COVID-19 vaccine when it’s available is critical to controlling the pandemic. https://t.co/21OHEe8sB5 pic.twitter.com/jq5b8ZDc1J
— CDC (@CDCgov) March 2, 2021
It’s a reminder that, while the Johnson and Johnson vaccine is a single dose, it takes 14 days to reach its full virus defense.
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“Nothing in life is 100 percent certain,” Dr. Khan says.
Physicians say anyone feeling a fever or generally ill should delay receiving any of the vaccines so that they can differentiate between an infection caused by the virus and a side effect from the shot.
Cox Media Group
