COVID-19 If I think (or know) that I have had COVID-19, how long should I wait before I get vaccinated? You should wait until you are no longer infectious before you get vaccinated (otherwise, youmight infect other people while getting your shot). If it’s 10 days after your symptoms first appeared, you’ve gone 24 hours without a fever or using fever-reducing medication (such as ibuprofen or acetaminophen) and your other symptoms are getting better, you will no longer be infectious. If you were infected with COVID-19 but didn’t experience any symptoms, wait for 10 days after you tested positive before getting vaccinated. What are “variants”? Are COVID-19 variants more dangerous? Can getting vaccinated protect me against these variants? All viruses (including the SARS-CoV-2 virus) change over time. As viruses replicate (make copies of themselves), the copies may be slightly different than the original. These differences are known as “mutations.” A “variant” is a version of the virus with at least one mutation. While most mutations don’t affect how infectious a virus is, or how serious an illness it may produce, some do. Variants with these sorts of mutations can be dangerous because they may spread more quickly and easily than previous versions of the virus, or may make people much sicker. The COVID-19 vaccines that are currently available or being developed should provide at least some protection against variants of SARS-CoV-2 because of how they affect the immune system. These vaccines trigger a range of antibodies and cells, meaning that they may be less effective against some variants, but not completely ineffective. Scientists are following the variants. If it turns out that a vaccine is less effective against a particular variant, the vaccine will be altered to make it more effective against that variant. Is it safe for me to get vaccinated if I’ve had COVID19 and I’m a “long-hauler” who still has symptoms? Generally speaking, it’s safe to get vaccinated if you had COVID-19 and still have symptoms, but are no longer contagious (“long-hauler”). There is no evidence that a COVID-19 vaccine will make long-haulers sicker or at greater risk of COVID-19 complications, so they should be vaccinated unless there is another reason why they should not get the vaccine. I’ve already had COVID-19. Do I really need to get vaccinated? Yes. Although having COVID-19 may provide you with some protection against reinfection, it’s uncertain how long this protectionmight last. As there is a possibility of becoming reinfected, and COVID-19 can have serious health consequences, it is recommended that you be vaccinated after you have recovered from COVID-19 and are no longer infectious. If I get the vaccine, will I test positive for COVID-19 when I do a PCR test? No, you won’t test positive after receiving the vaccine. Shouldn’t they be screening people for COVID-19 before they administer the vaccine? They do. Every person who receives the vaccine is first asked a series of questions. Some of these questions are designed to screen out people who are experiencing symptoms characteristic of COVID-19. People are not tested before being vaccinated because it would slow down the process of getting as many people vaccinated as soon as possible. 44 | www.snowbirds.org
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