Download a PDF of the Covid-Vaccine-FAQs-9-13-2021 or view below.
Currently, there are three COVID-19 vaccines available in the United States. All are effective, safe, and provide protection against all known variants at this time
They are not interchangeable, which means that if you start with one vaccine manufacturer, you need to receive that same type for your second vaccine, where applicable.
All require two (2) weeks after the full series is complete to be considered fully immune.
Vaccine Manufacturer |
Number of Doses, Timing |
Type of Vaccine |
Age Group |
Link to Fact Sheet for Recipients and Caregivers |
Pfizer-BioNTech |
Two, 21 days apart |
mRNA |
12 years and older |
Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine EUA Fact Sheet for
Recipients and Caregivers (fda.gov) |
Moderna |
Two, 28 days apart |
mRNA |
18 years and older |
Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine EUA Fact Sheet for
Recipients and Caregivers (fda.gov) |
Johnson & Johnson/Janssen |
One |
Viral Vector |
18 years and older |
Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine EUA Fact Sheet for
Recipients and Caregivers 07122021 (fda.gov) |
Although we don’t know the exact
limits of how long a COVID-19 vaccination remains protective, it was recognized
after evaluation of existing data,
that protection against SARS-CoV-2 infection likely decreases over time
following initial doses of the vaccine. This means that the vaccine could
provide less protection against severe disease, hospitalization, and death,
especially among those who are at higher risk or were vaccinated during the
earlier phases of the vaccination rollout. It is recommended that boosters
“will be needed to maximize vaccine-induced protection and prolong its
durability.”
A plan to begin offering boosters in the fall of 2021, subject to
the FDA and ACIP (CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices)
conducting a thorough review of the safety and effectiveness of a third dose of
the Pfizer and Moderna mRNA vaccines and issuing booster dose recommendations.
CDC already recommended that people whose immune systems are moderate to severely compromised should receive an additional dose of mRNA COVID-19 vaccine at least 28 days after the initial 2 doses. This is due to the fact that this group does not always build the same level of immunity compared to people who are not immunocompromised and have accounted for a large proportion of hospitalized breakthrough cases.
Once the review is complete by FDA and ACIP, boosters will be made available to everyone starting 8 months after an individual’s second dose. At that time, people who were fully vaccinated earliest in the vaccination rollout, including many health care providers, nursing home residents, and other seniors, will likely be eligible for a booster.
Boosters will likely be needed for people who received the Johnson & Johnson (J&J) vaccine as well, but administration of the J&J vaccine did not begin in the U.S. until March 2021, and more data needed to make this conclusion.
Joint Statement from HHS Public Health and Medical Experts on COVID-19 Booster Shots | CDC Online Newsroom | CDCYes, because it is required as a condition of employment, it would be considered work related if there were an unexpected adverse side effect.
We understand that there may be
concern over the safety and efficacy of a COVID-19 vaccine that may be under
EUA – Emergency Use Authorization.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is required to make decisions that are
guided by science and data regarding authorization or approval of COVID-19 vaccines
and have undergone the most intense safety monitoring in U.S. history. “V-Safe,”
a new smartphone-based tool, which is an “after-vaccination health checker for
people who receive COVID-19 vaccines” has been used to identify and report any
safety issues that have developed post-vaccination so that they can be further
investigated.
Vaccines cannot give you COVID-19,
cause you to be magnetic or alter your DNA. You may have side effects after
vaccination that are normal and should go away in a few days. These are signs
that your body is building protection.
They could include tiredness, headache or chills. Read more: Myths and Facts about COVID-19 Vaccines | CDC
More serious side effects, such as the
rare occurrence of myocarditis and
pericarditis in adolescents and young adults, have been reported after getting
the second dose of the mRNA vaccine. The known and potential benefits of
COVID-19 vaccination outweigh the known and potential risks of rare side
effects, but individual questions need to be discussed with your PCP. Myocarditis and Pericarditis Following mRNA
COVID-19 Vaccination | CDC
Additionally, J&J’s vaccine has rare risk of blood clots with low
platelets after vaccination in women younger than 50 years old. Agencies Underscore Confidence in Vaccine’s
Safety and Effectiveness Following Data Assessment; Available Data Suggest
Potential Blood Clots Are Very Rare Events (cdc.gov)
NO - You won’t be charged for the vaccine. It will be covered like your normal flu vaccination.
The Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHSS) and Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Maine CDC) issued an emergency rule on Aug. 12, 2021 that requires healthcare workers to be fully vaccinated by Oct. 1, 2021. Healthcare workers are defined as any individual employed by a hospital, multi-level health care facility, home health agency, nursing facility, residential care facility, intermediate care facility, EMS organization, or dental practices. This includes independent contractors.
Fully vaccinated means that you have received both shots of the Pfizer and Moderna, or one J&J dose, by Sept, 17 in order to allow full immunity to develop by Oct. 1
Fully vaccinated means that you have received both shots of the Pfizer and Moderna, or one J&J dose, by Sept, 17 in order to allow full immunity to develop by Oct. 1.
After FDA approves a vaccine or authorizes a vaccine for emergency use, it continues to be studied to determine how well it works under real-world, “imperfect”, conditions. These ongoing evaluations help us understand if vaccines are performing as expected outside the more controlled setting of a clinical trial. Factors to be considered include different populations and host factors, evolving viral factors such as variants and other factors that impact vaccine delivery such as storage and handling of vaccines.
Based on evidence from clinical trials in people 16 years and older, the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine was 95% effective at preventing laboratory-confirmed infection with the virus that causes COVID-19 in people who received two doses and had no evidence of being previously infected. It was also highly effective at preventing laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 infection in adolescents 12–15 years old with the immune response at least as strong as that documented in 16–25 year olds. Results from real world conditions reduced the risk of COVID-19, including severe illness by 90% or more, among those fully vaccinated.
The Moderna vaccine was 94.1% effective at preventing laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 infection in people who received two doses and had no evidence of being previously infected.
The J&J/Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine was 66.3% effective in clinical trials at preventing laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 infection in people who received the vaccine and had no evidence of being previously infected. The vaccine had high efficacy at preventing hospitalization and death in people who did get sick.
Protection Against the Delta Variant
|
Pfizer |
Moderna |
J&J |
Effect against Infection |
64-88% |
72% |
“very good antibody response” |
Effect against Hospitalization |
93-96% |
96% |
|
Vaccination is our best protection against all strains of the virus that cause COVID-19. Infection prevention experts recommend that you get the vaccine to protect yourself, your family, your team members, your patients and those not yet eligible for a vaccine, such as young children.
By protecting yourself you can help stop the spread of COVID-19 in our communities and the potential for ongoing viral variants.
Personal health benefits: COVID-19 vaccines have shown to be effective in preventing infection and serious disease.
Vaccinated persons are much less likely to contract disease and if they do acquire a breakthrough infection, typically have much more mild symptoms with better outcomes.
They are less prone to re-infections than someone who had natural disease.
Social aspects: Vaccinated people can resume activities that they did prior to the pandemic (but should still wear a mask indoors while in an area of substantial or high transmission). No testing or self-quarantine is required for domestic travel, and they don’t have to get tested prior to leaving the U.S. unless their destination requires it. Although testing is recommended 3-5 days after internal.
Exposures Contact Tracing : If vaccinated, testing 3-5 days after exposure is still recommended, as is wearing a mask indoors in public for 14 days following exposure or until their test result is negative, but they are not automatically removed from work and forced to quarantine in the home.
Protecting your friends, family, patients and those who cannot be vaccinated or are immunocompromised: Vaccinated people are less likely to get the infection, therefore less likely to pass it on.
Protecting your community: By helping to stop the spread of infection, those who have received vaccinations are preventing potential mutations (variants) from occurring and entering circulation.
Yes, masking will still be required. Similar to other vaccines, a large number of people in the community will need to get vaccinated before transmission drops enough to stop the use of masks.
Even though the vaccine has been shown to significantly reduce the likelihood of becoming infected with COVID-19, there is not yet enough data to make fully informed recommendations on when masking will no longer be required. In addition, patients need to be reassured that hospitals are following all CDC guidelines and in order to make sure they feel safe, recommendations regarding masking of all hospital personnel will not be changed based on vaccination or exposure status.
Yes. While you are afforded protection, it will be important for everyone to continue using all the tools available to us to help stop this pandemic. These include practices such as covering your mouth and nose with a mask while indoors in areas of substantial or high transmission or around vulnerable people, washing hands often and staying at least 6 feet away from others. Together, COVID-19 vaccination and following CDC’s recommendations for how to protect yourself and others will offer the best protection from getting and spreading COVID-19. Other factors, including how many people get vaccinated and how the virus is spreading in communities, will also affect this decision.
Infection results in highly variable antibody responses, meaning that some people have very good immunity after infection and some have very little or none. And it is not just a matter of the level (or quantity) of antibodies that affects how effective they are against reinfection. Also, the vaccine is designed to create a maximal response. In other words, we know that vaccination will provide more reliable and better immunity against the virus.
A recent study has shown that unvaccinated persons are more than twice as likely to be re-infected with COVID-19 than those who were fully vaccinated, indicating that vaccines offer better protection than natural immunity alone and that vaccines, even after prior infection, help prevent reinfections.
The CDC has a website that provides much useful and authoritative information about COVID-19 vaccines: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/index.html or go to the FDA website at COVID-19 Vaccines | FDA
It’s advisable that you DO NOT get your information regarding vaccines from social media as it is neither fact-checked nor based on scientific or data driven information.
Routine vaccination visits should be postponed for people who are suspected or confirmed to have COVID-19, regardless of symptoms. While it is generally OK to get a routine vaccine when mildly ill, people with COVID-19 who have symptoms should wait to be vaccinated until they have recovered from their illness and have met the criteria for discontinuing isolation to avoid exposing others. Those without symptoms should also wait until they meet the criteria before getting vaccinated. This guidance also applies to people who get COVID-19 before getting their second dose of vaccine.
Notify their provider’s office before their visit if they have or develop any symptoms of COVID-19.
- Notify their provider’s office if they have been exposed to someone with COVID-19 within the last 14 days.
- Someone who has symptoms, tests positive or has been identified as being exposed to COVID-19 should follow CDC recommendations for home isolation. They should reschedule their appointment once they meet criteria to discontinue home isolation.
Once the isolation period is over they can be vaccinated. Ensuring that routine vaccination is maintained or restarted during the COVID-19 pandemic is essential for protecting people and their community from vaccine-preventable diseases and outbreaks.
An Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for a vaccine is based on the need to use a vaccine quickly to save lives during a public health emergency. The EUA is a faster track but no steps are skipped in the safety evaluation process. The FDA will assess if the vaccine known and potential benefits outweigh the known and potential risks. Two separate advisory boards (Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee and Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices) will also review the data and make recommendations. An EUA does NOT imply that the authorization was done too quickly or that the vaccine is not safe.
FDA (Food and Drug Administration) expects vaccine manufacturers to include a plan for active follow up for safety, including serious or clinically significant adverse events, to inform ongoing benefit-risk determinations to continue the EUA and to continue their clinical trials to obtain additional data to pursue licensure (full approval).
To trigger an immune response, many vaccines put a weakened or inactivated germ into our bodies. Instead, mRNA vaccines teach our cells how to make a protein—or even just a piece of a protein—that triggers an immune response inside our bodies. That immune response, which produces antibodies, is what protects us from getting infected if the real virus enters our bodies.
Messenger (m)RNA never enters the nucleus of the cell, which is where our genetic material (DNA) is kept. The cell breaks down and gets rid of the mRNA soon after it’s finished using the instructions. It is not harmful, nor does it alter your cells in any way.
Researchers have been studying and working with mRNA vaccines for decades and interest has grown in this method because the process can be standardized and scaled up, making vaccine development faster than the traditional methods of making vaccines. Beyond vaccines, cancer research has used mRNA to trigger the immune system to target specific cancer cells.
Absolutely none! All of the current Pfizer (BNT162b2) and Moderna (mRNA-1273), as well Johnson & Johnson/Janssen Do NOT contain COVID-19 virus so they cannot give you COVID-19. Side effects that may occur are evidence that your body is reacting to the vaccine and producing immunity, not an indication of infection.
No, CMHC follows Maine CDC guidelines for
travel. Maine no longer requires proof
of a negative test or quarantine for domestic travel. This is subject to be re-evaluated as
prevalence of COVID-19 variants evolve.
Fully vaccinated international travelers to
Maine do not need to quarantine or test if they are asymptomatic.
Unvaccinated international travelers should
quarantine for 7 days since their arrival and test, if asymptomatic, within 3-5
days of their arrival into the U.S. Healthcare
workers returning to work must use source control, physical distancing, hand
and respiratory hygiene AND keep a face mask on at all times for the total of
14 days. If source control needs to be
removed for food/drink healthcare workers must be in a private space with door
closed and no other occupants.
Yes, screening is a safety and regulatory requirement.
Yes, symptoms on the screening questions are to be honestly answered regardless of whether they’re due to a vaccine side effect, COVID-19, or any other cause. Occupational Health needs to be notified and will make a determination as to whether you need to stay home, require testing or may continue to work
That’s all the more reason that you should pursue vaccination!
A compromised immune system is one that will have trouble fighting infection. Vaccines help our bodies develop immunity to the virus that causes COVID-19 without us having to get the illness or having the disease-causing virus enter our bodies at all.
If you have any specific questions or concerns, you should always consult with your primary care physician. It is important to get information from reliable sources (CDC, medical directors, providers). Social media is full of misinformation and opinions based on that misinformation. Here are some additional links to information:
If you had an immediate (within 4 hours) or severe allergic reaction (anaphylaxis/requiring epinephrine or an Epp>iPen) to a previous COVID-19 vaccine, you should not get a second dose of that vaccine.
If you get a rash where you were vaccinated; red, itchy, swollen or painful reaction at the injection site called “COVID arm,” you can receive the second shot. These reactions have been documented to start a few days to more than a week after the first shot and are sometimes quite large. They can be treated with an antihistamine, if itchy, or if painful, a pain medication like acetaminophen or a non-steroidal anti- inflammatory drug. When you return for your second vaccine, let your provider know and they may recommend that you get the second dose in the opposite arm.
Common side effects such as pain, redness or swelling at the injection site, or fatigue, headache, muscle pain, chills, fever and nausea may be common. To reduce pain and discomfort at the site, apply a clean, cool, wet washcloth over the area and use or exercise your arm. Drink plenty of fluids and dress lightly if fever develops.
Side effects after the second vaccine may be more intense than the ones experienced after the first one. These side effects are normal signs that your body is building protection and should go away within a few days.
Serious side effects are rare, but if you have concerns regarding worsening redness or tenderness or if they are worrying you, contact your provider.
While many of our team members have no patient interactions, we all have interactions with other team members. And those team members may be patient caregivers, or they might have non-immunized family or they may just play an important role in our organization (like you do!). In any event, we are trying to protect each other and our patients. And as I said earlier, the governor’s rule is very clear – anyone who receives compensation from a healthcare facility.
There are several programs currently in place to provide compensation for individuals who experience adverse medical events as a result of vaccination. The program available to an individual may vary. The first step in any determination will be to file a patient report in the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) as soon as you identify that you have experienced an adverse event.