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Coronavirus Guide

Information for health professionals and the public in the Las Vegas Valley
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This page is no longer being updated. Please refer to the Home Page for the latest information.

About this Page

Welcome to the COVID-19 Vaccine Information Page

This guide is written at a 4th- to 5th-grade reading level.

It will be easy to read for people with low English reading abilities.

It presents scientific ideas in a way that is easy to understand.

Why get the vaccine?

Why should I get the vaccine?

  • It helps protect you from getting sick with COVID-19.
  • It helps protect the people around you from getting sick.
  • You can stay safe from lung, heart, and other bad outcomes from getting sick with COVID-19.
  • You will be immune longer than if you had COVID-19.
  • You will help end the pandemic sooner.

 

Watch the video below for more on why you should get vaccinated:

 

How well do the vaccines work?

  • The Moderna and Pfizer vaccines are 94% to 95% effective.
    • This means 94 or 95 out of 100 people who get the vaccine will not get very sick if they come in contact with the coronavirus.
  • A vaccine protects you from being very ill. You might still get COVID-19, but you will have fewer symptoms and get better faster.

 

Why do I need two shots?

  • Both Pfizer and Moderna vaccines have two doses. This helps your body create a strong immune response to the coronavirus.
  • After one dose you are only 50% protected from illness. After two doses you are 95% protected.

 

Should I get a third shot/booster?

  • Yes. Research shows the vaccines begin to lose their protective strength after 6 months.
  • Everyone 18 years and older should get a booster dose of either mRNA vaccine 5 months after their 2nd dose of either mRNA vaccine, or after their Janssen/J&J vaccine.
  • Teens aged 12-17 should get a booster shot of Pfizer-NBioTech 5 months after their 2nd dose of Pfizer-NBioTech.

How do the vaccines work?

imae of 4 vials labeled coronavirus vaccine on a table next to a syringe. The Pfizer logo is on the wall behind the vials.

 

What is in the vaccines?

  • The vaccines don’t have any coronavirus in them.
  • They have mRNA, which stands for messenger RNA.
  • The other ingredients are lipids, salts, sugar, acids, and acid stabilizers.
  • Lipids help the mRNA stay together and enter your cells.
  • The salt and acid ingredients help the vaccine match your own body's acid levels.
  • Sugar helps the mRNA keep its shape when the vaccine freezes.
  • For more complex information you can read the fact sheets.

 

How do the vaccines work?

  • The part of both the Pfizer and Moderna vaccine that makes them work is mRNA.
  • The messages from mRNA tell your immune system how to work. It teaches your cells to make spike protein. This protein is on the virus that causes COVID-19.
  • Your immune cells fight off the spike protein and they remember how to do it.
  • If you catch the virus after getting the vaccine your immune system stops it.
  • This is what protects you from getting very sick in the future.
  • The vaccines are frozen to stop the mRNA from breaking down during travel and storage.

 

The video below explains how mRNA vaccines work:

How safe are the vaccines?

How safe are the vaccines?

  • Both vaccines are safe and approved by the Food & Drug Administration.
    • Researchers worked very fast to make the vaccines.
    • They completed all the usual tests needed for vaccines.
    • They also gave the vaccines to tens of thousands of people.
    • That is why we are confident they are safe and that they work.
  • A very small number of people have bad reactions to vaccines.
    • If you have had an allergic reaction to a vaccine before, speak to your doctor or pharmacist about safety.
    • If you are pregnant or breastfeeding, speak to your doctor before getting the vaccine.
    • Only the bad reactions get reported. This makes it seem like the vaccine is more dangerous than it is. 
    • Thousands of people have had the vaccine without a bad reaction.
    • Getting vaccinated is much less risky than getting COVID-19.
  • mRNA vaccines do not change your genes.
    • Your body destroys the mRNA from the vaccine within a few hours.
    • It does not stay in your body and can't change your DNA.

 

Watch the video below to learn more about vaccine testing:

 

Does the vaccine have side effects?

  • Most vaccines can cause mild side effects.
  • For the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, you might have some redness and swelling at the spot they gave you the shot.
    • Your arm might also feel sore a few hours later and last for about a day.
  • The second dose of the vaccine might make you feel like you have a cold.
    • This goes away in about a day and you can take over-the-counter medicine to help relieve symptoms.
    • You might experience:
      • Fever
      • Headache
      • Fatigue
      • Muscle pain
      • Joint pain
      • Chills
      • Upset stomach
    • A severe allergic reaction is very rare.
      • An allergic reaction would happen a few minutes to an hour after getting the vaccine.
      • Call 9-1-1 if you experience the following symptoms:
        • Difficulty breathing
        • Swelling of your face and throat
        • A fast heartbeat
        • A bad rash all over your body
        • Dizziness and weakness
    • If you have side effects from the vaccine, you can report them.
      • You can use v-safe, a smartphone app from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
        • The app collects information about side effects and reminds you to take your second dose.
      • You can also report side effects to the FDA/CDC Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS).
  • Getting a headache or fever or feeling tired and achy for a day or 2 is actually a good thing! These are signs that the vaccine is working.

When & Where to Get the Vaccine

When can I get a vaccine?

  • Vaccines are currently being given to all eligible Nevadans.

Where can I get a vaccine?

image of gloved hands using a syringe to pull vaccine from out of a vial

What about the Johnson & Johnson vaccine?

What are the risks?

  • Most people who get the J&J vaccine will have only mild side effects.
  • Go to a doctor right away if you had the vaccine in the past 3 weeks and have any of these symptoms:
    • severe headache

    • backache

    • new neurologic symptoms

    • severe abdominal pain

    • shortness of breath

    • leg swelling

    • tiny red spots on the skin (petechiae)

    • new or easy bruising

 

How does it work?

  • A virus that does not cause COVID-19 enters your cells
  • Information stored in the virus tells your cells to make a very small part of the COVID-19 virus called a spike protein.
  • The spike protein is attacked by your immune cells.
  • Your immune cells learn and remember how to fight off the virus that causes COVID-19.

 

How well does it work?

  • 66.3% of people who got the vaccine were protected from getting sick with COVID-19 after 2 weeks.

  • 100% of those who did get sick did not have to go to the hospital.

  • The Janssen/J&J vaccine is less effective than the mRNA vaccines.

 

J&J Vaccine Pause

On April 13, 2021 the CDC and FDA paused giving J&J vaccines. They allowed their use again starting April 25th, 2021.

  • The pause was because 6 people out of 7 million developed blood clots after taking the vaccine.

    • Clots are solid clumps of cells that block blood flow in the body.

    • It is still not known if the vaccine caused the clots.

    • All people who had clots were female and 18 to 48 years old.

    • The reaction happened between 6 and 13 days after getting the J&J vaccine.

  • The CDC and FDA determined the benefits of giving the vaccine were much more important than the risk of blood clots.

 

To read more about the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, visit the CDC website here:

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/different-vaccines/janssen.html

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