Over 50 million people have received the COVID-19 vaccine. Vaccine eligibility has expanded to all adults in Florida as of April 5th. Depending on the vaccine site people have 3 options: Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, or Johnson & Johnson.
Pfizer and Moderna are two shot mRNA vaccines. The second Pfizer shot is given 21 days after the first; Moderna is given 28 days after. Pfizer shows 95% efficacy and Moderna shows 94.1% efficacy.
mRNA vaccines send a piece of the genetic information of the COVID-19 virus into the body so it can develop antibodies against it. This does not change someone’s DNA or infect them with the virus itself.
Johnson & Johnson is a single shot carrier vaccine. J&J is the only single-shot vaccine available in the US and shows 72% overall efficacy.
In regards to new efficacy against new variants, research shows that all three can protect against the British variant. Some companies are considering increasing the dosage as a booster shot to protect against new variants but this is still being disputed.
Regardless of what vaccine you get, register to get vaccinated and do your part to end the pandemic.
