COVID-19 Vaccine Information

Long-term and serious side effects of any vaccine are very rare. We also know, historically, when side effects of a vaccine are discovered, they are observed within six weeks of vaccination. The CDC and FDA continue to closely monitor the COVID-19 vaccines, and no long-term side effects have been detected. Typical short-term side effects from the COVID-19 vaccines include a sore arm, tiredness, chills, and headache. These symptoms will resolve within a few days, and many people don’t experience any side effects.

For more information, go to: cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/safety/safety-of-vaccines.html

While the COVID-19 vaccines didn’t go through the normal FDA-approval process, they have been FDA authorized. An EUA, or Emergency Use Authorization, authorizes a product to be used during emergencies when no other treatment options or cures are available. No steps in a traditional FDA approval process are skipped for an EUA, but some of those steps have been done concurrently rather than sequentially. The same rigorous clinical trials and data were submitted to the FDA for the COVID-19 vaccines currently available in the US. If data arises that finds that it is not safe, the FDA can pull the EUA at any time.

In a traditional FDA approval process, drug companies usually apply for approval once they have completed all of the trials associated with a product. In the case of COVID-19 vaccines, that may mean waiting until results are available from trials in children as young as 6 months. With this EUA, we can start giving a vaccine to the age groups in whom we know the vaccine is safe and effective even before we have data on other age groups.

The vaccines are not “experimental.” They have been given to more than one hundred million people in the US, and the FDA has gained a detailed understanding of their effectiveness and side effects. That’s why the FDA is confident that the risks associated with getting COVID-19 are vastly more than the risks associated with the vaccine, even for young healthy people. See more information on EUAs here: youtube.com/watch?v=iGkwaESsGBQ

If you are fully vaccinated, CBJ no longer requires masks be worn in most indoor or outdoor settings. CBJ has revised the COVID-19 Mitigation Strategies to reflect the updated CDC guidance on masks. Fully vaccinated is defined as two weeks after your final dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. ​

Masks must still be worn by those who are not yet fully vaccinated​ in indoor public areas and outdoors in crowded events. And everyone – regardless of vaccination status – must continue to wear a mask on Capital Transit, in the Juneau International Airport, Juneau School District facilities, Bartlett Regional Hospital, and in any local business, workplace, healthcare, or other setting that still requires it.

While this is technically true, 1% of the population is still 3.2 million Americans. COVID-19 is ten times more deadly than the seasonal flu, was the third leading cause of death in the US in 2020, and accounted for an increase in the U.S. mortality rate by 16% as compared to 2019. Over 40,000 children lost parents to COVID-19.

For those who had mild or asymptomatic cases, COVID-19 has a wide range of other long-lasting symptoms. These include fatigue, brain fog, joint pain, hair loss, organ damage, and erectile dysfunction.

Vaccines provide better immune responses than natural infection. Additionally, experts do not yet know how long you are protected from catching COVID-19 after recovering from the disease. A vaccine will likely provide longer immune protection, and it doesn’t carry the risk of life-threatening side effects as getting the disease. For more information on vaccine benefits, visit cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/vaccine-benefits.html

The risk of getting COVID-19 far outweighs the risk of getting a COVID-19 vaccine—so why wait? While the current variants of the virus are more contagious, all three of the US-authorized COVID-19 vaccines are effective against contracting these mutations.

Additionally, the best way to prevent the virus from mutating is to prevent the virus from spreading—and getting a COVID-19 vaccine is the most effective prevention tool in transmission and contraction of the COVID-19 disease. For more information about COVID-19 variants, visit cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/transmission/variant.html

While most infected children usually experience minimal symptoms, some can develop serious illness. Also, asymptomatic infections can still spread the virus through schools and sport teams, affecting not only other children, but also at-risk adults. Vaccination gets our kids back to the programs, activities, and social interactions they need for appropriate academic, social-emotional, and physical development. And, besides being protected against COVID-19, another perk of being vaccinated is not having to wear a mask or socially distance.

No. Messenger RNA is active in a cell’s cytoplasm and never enters the nucleus of a cell, which is where our DNA is kept. The mRNA quickly disintegrates after it enters the cell, and no part of the vaccine remains in the body.

There is no evidence that COVID-19 vaccines cause infertility.