The World Is Starting to Get Vaccinated Against COVID -- Here’s What That Means For You

There are two FDA-approved vaccines being distributed in the US right now from Pfizer and Moderna, and after two doses, they provide 95% protection against severe COVID-19 illness. There’s still a lot we don’t know about the rollout, but here’s what we do!

How Does the Vaccine Work?

The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines don’t introduce live or dead versions of the virus into your system (unlike the flu vaccine which uses a dead version of the flu virus). Instead, they teach our cells to make a harmless protein found on the surface of the COVID-19 virus, which triggers an immune response. Your body then makes antibodies that protect against the actual COVID-19 virus.

This is a new kind of vaccine called an mRNA vaccine, and the COVID vaccines have passed all necessary clinical trials to become the first mRNA vaccine approved for public use (though researchers have been studying and developing them for decades before this).

How Are the Vaccinations Going So Far?

According to the Washington Post’s vaccination tracker, at least 33.2 million people have received one or more doses of the vaccine in the US, and more than a million doses are being administered daily.

Right now we’re at about 3% of the population being fully vaccinated, and 10% having received the first dose. Experts roughly estimate that we’ll need 50% to 80% of the population fully vaccinated to benefit from herd immunity. Dr. Anthony Fauci has said that if the rollout goes as planned, the US can achieve this milestone by fall 2021.

What Challenges Are There to Vaccination?

Because it’s up to state leadership, the rollout of the vaccine has been inconsistent from state to state, with some states reporting higher rates of vaccination than others.

Numbers coming from some states also indicate that there are racial and economic disparities in vaccination, with wealthier white Americans receiving them at higher rates. It doesn’t help that centuries of medical racism have led to distrust of the vaccine in the Black community, who are disproportionately impacted by COVID-19.

Pfizer and Moderna are also rushing to speed up production of the vaccines to meet the demand as some states experience shortages and delays. And while the vaccines are still protective against new variants of the virus coming from the UK and South Africa, experts fear their effectiveness may decrease as new strains emerge -- which means redevelopment and redistribution may be necessary.

When Will Young People Get the Vaccine?

Each state gets to determine how the vaccine gets distributed to their residents, but the CDC has recommended that states prioritize healthcare workers, older folks, and essential workers -- although experts estimate everyone should be able to get vaccinated by the end of 2021.

Although the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are approved for folks who are 16- and 18-years-old respectively, it’s likely that young people without any pre-existing medical conditions will be among the last to be vaccinated because they’re the least likely to die from COVID-19, so states won’t prioritize them. But it’ll still be crucial that they receive the vaccine eventually because they’re also the most likely to spread the virus.

(To learn who’s eligible to get vaccinated in your state, keep an eye on your local health department’s website.)

What Happens When Everyone is Vaccinated?

Well, for one thing, whether it’s due to allergies or age or just plain apprehension, not everyone is going to be vaccinated. And while we’ll achieve herd immunity eventually, it doesn’t mean that we can totally return to normal just yet. We still don’t know how long immunity from the vaccines will last, or whether they’ll prevent asymptomatic transmission. We’ll probably continue health guidelines like physical distancing, hand hygiene, and mask-wearing well into the year.

Whatever happens, it won’t be a sudden transition. We’ll probably see a gradual loosening of guidelines over time until COVID-19 no longer dominates our lives the way it does now, and some coronavirus-era precautions may remain culturally for a long time.

Looking even further ahead, what’s also exciting is the potential for future mRNA vaccines to tackle diseases like HIV, Zika virus, and even certain kinds of cancer.

TAKE ACTION: While we wait for vaccines to roll out, face masks are still crucial for stopping the spread of COVID-19. Make your own DIY face masks to keep yourself and others healthy.

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