Everything you need to know about the Covid-19 Vaccine

  Everything you need to know about the Covid-19 Vaccine How do vaccines work? Vaccines help people develop immunity to a virus or other germ. A vaccine introduces a less harmful part of that germ — or something created to look or behave like it — into a person’s body. The body’s immune system develops antibodies that fight that particular germ and keep the person from getting sick from it. Later, if the person encounters that germ again, their immune system can “recognize” it and “remember” how to fight it off. Is there a vaccine for the coronavirus disease? Yes, the FDA has granted emergency use authorization (EUA) for COVID-19 vaccines. Pfizer’s vaccine was authorized Dec. 12, 2020; Moderna’s version received authorization Dec. 18, 2020; and Johnson & Johnson’s was authorized Feb. 27, 2021 but its use was paused on April 13. How will a vaccine prevent COVID-19? The coronavirus that causes COVID-19 has spikes of protein on each viral particle. These spikes help the viruses attach to cells and cause disease. Some of the coronavirus vaccines in development are designed to help the body “recognize” these spike proteins and fight the coronavirus that has them. An effective vaccine will protect someone who receives it by lowering the chance of getting COVID-19 if the person encounters the coronavirus. More important is whether the vaccine prevents serious illness, hospitalization and death.  At this time, all three vaccines are highly efficacious at preventing serious illness, hospitalization and death from COVID-19.  Widespread vaccination means the coronavirus will not infect as many people. This will limit spread through communities and will restrict the virus’s opportunity to continue to mutate into new variants. How will we know if a COVID-19 vaccine is safe and effective? In order to be declared safe and effective, a COVID-19 vaccine must pass certain tests and standards. Organizations such as the National Academy of Sciences, the National Institutes for Health, and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) use scientific data from research to help decide if and when new drugs and vaccines can become available to the public. It is important to note that you cannot get COVID-19 from a vaccine. The vaccines contain proteins or other biological substances to stimulate the immune response, but not the coronavirus itself.