Covid Vaccine Distribution

[CardsFan]

Access has been a real crapshoot in Missouri......

We are on the other side of the state (St. Charles City) and have had the same experience. We got the occasional email from suppliers, but nothing concrete.

We happened to just get lucky with the mass vaccination site at UMSL. It was hyped all over the TV and Internet. Tried to sign up when it opened. No luck. DW got on the phone and 15 minutes later we had appointments for last Saturday. Only a 20 minute drive, but we would have taken the hour drive, like you.

We have friends that drove from Lake St. Louis to Hannibal a few weeks ago for theirs.

 

[RockyMtn]

I'm sorry to tell you that there is a new variant that popped up in Joplin. It completely defies the anti-bodies in people who have had mixed vaccines doses. Stay inside and don't go out for at least six more weeks.

I didn't know that Janis Joplin was still spreading diseases! I'll be careful and on the lookout for her/it.

 

[ABQ2015]

So excited that I have an appointment for my first vaccine tomorrow! I am in the massive 1B pool of ages 16-74 with chronic conditions, about 40% of the state population. I signed up at the state vaccination registration site the second day it went online but appointments are offered at random within your group. Baby boomers are not a priority group in my state until 1C after essential workers like grocery store workers and prisoners.

Early this morning while still asleep, the site texted me an event code but no appointments were available when I woke up two hours later. I was bummed but kept checking every hour throughout the day and finally got an appointment. It must have been a cancellation as only one slot was available. I feel like I won the lottery! The appointment is at a drugstore so I assume it will be the Moderna vaccine.

 

[kobedog]

My wife (age 58) and I (age 59) received the Moderna vaccine at the fairgrounds. They asked for pre-existing conditions and my wife showed her diabetes prescription. When they asked what my pre-existing condition is, I responded that I'm a little overweight. The attendant said "Oh you are obese so drive right up". We didn't have to wait and received our first shots and shot card. Pretty easy here in rural Nevada.

 

[Popeye]

My wife (age 58) and I (age 59) received the Moderna vaccine at the fairgrounds. They asked for pre-existing conditions and my wife showed her diabetes prescription. When they asked what my pre-existing condition is, I responded that I'm a little overweight. The attendant said "Oh you are obese so drive right up". We didn't have to wait and received our first shots and shot card. Pretty easy here in rural Nevada.

Could you just roll a pack of Marlboros in your tee shirt like James Dean and go in as a smoker? I was thinking of trying that! lol!

 

[Sunset]

I was enrolled in the Johnson and Johnson trial but it was a two dose trial rather than one dose. Once Pfizer and Moderna became available the told us they would "unblind" us and let us know if we got the real thing or the placebo if we were able to schedule an appointment.

Well I was able to secure an appointment at the local Safeway on Feb 1. Called the trial folks. Got answering machine. Told them I got an appointment for a Moderna shot and I want to be unblinded. Asked them to call me back. No response. Called again two days later....again got answering machine and no return call

So I say "screw em" and get my Moderna shot on Saturday. Tuesday the trial people call to confirm an appointment and I tell them I have been trying to get a hold of them because I had an appointment for a Moderna shot and they never called me back. They were a bit ticked but then I asked them what they would have done if nobody called them back and they had been able to secure an appointment.

They said they would unblind me and call me back in ten minutes. They call back and I had gotten the J & J vaccine and not the placebo.

So now I have one J & J and one Moderna floating around in my blood. The study people tell me they still want me to come in for my next appointment which would have been for my second J & J shot but that they wouldn't give me the second because I had the Moderna shot. I said fine but why? Guess it has something to do with keeping people in the study or they don't get paid by the drug company. Fine by me..it takes like ten minutes and they pay me $125 each time I go in.

So I show up for appointment and they are about to give me the second J & J shot when I say whoa!!!!! Thought I wasn't getting another because I'm unblinded and got a Moderna shot. Nurses look at each other with blank stares

They come back in a couple of minutes, take my blood pressure, oxygen levels and give me my check an send me on my way.

Now I'm in for second Moderna shot and I tell the pharmacist what has happened so far and should I get the second Moderna shot. He laughs and says yes as J & J wasn't yet approved, Moderna takes two shots to be effective and they are different kinds of vaccines. So I get the second shot.

No reactions to any of the three shots except slightly sore arm. Guess I'm pretty well vaccinated for now.

What I've been wondering is: If you get 1 vaccine, does that interfere with the action of the second vaccine , as your body will already be prepared to fight off what it thinks is the virus

Did they do actual antibody testing on you to determine if you are in fact protected ?

 

[Koolau]

My tier - 65 to 74 just magically got moved on down the line by a month. It was presented as "Wow! The next group will (probably) be eligible as early as April 1." Of course, until today, it had been "as early as March 1." Of course, at least one whole group designated themselves as "front line" even though they are not on any line right now. Good deal if you can get it. But I'm not bitter. YMMV

 

[Nick12]

Could you just roll a pack of Marlboros in your tee shirt like James Dean and go in as a smoker? I was thinking of trying that! lol!

You don't even have to go to that extreme. I would borrow a smoke from a friend, put it in plain sight lodged behind my ear looking like Mr Cool . The RN would automatically think I am a smoker.

 

[RetireBy90]

What I've been wondering is: If you get 1 vaccine, does that interfere with the action of the second vaccine , as your body will already be prepared to fight off what it thinks is the virus

I don't know about J&J or Novavax but Pfizer and Moderna both work by infecting your cells and instructing them to produce the spike. Since the virus is never used your antibodies for Covid won't attack the vaccine.

The vaccine cells die off so it won't do this for ever, and after a period of time your cells that have been infected with the vaccine will die off and your own body will no longer produce the spike.

 

[Alan]

Currently the vaccines are being given to the 50 to 69 age range in the UK, plus those with health conditions such as asthma, and they have been working their way down in 5 year bands.

The remaining adults, under 50 with no other health issues are extremely unlikely to die or go to hospital so there have been many calls to switch to an occupation based selection criteria. They have just announced that they will continue with age based selection because it is much simpler and their models suggest that speed of vaccinations is the most important factor in reducing deaths and hospitalizations. (in the UK)

People aged 40-49 will be prioritised next for the Covid-19 vaccine, it has been announced.

Scientific advisers said sticking with an age-based approach would “provide the greatest benefit in the shortest time”.

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) made the announcement after considering whether groups such as teachers and police officers should be vaccinated next.

It said that targeting occupational groups would be “more complex to deliver and may slow down the vaccine programme” which would leave some more vulnerable people at higher risk of going unvaccinated for longer.

The committee therefore concluded that the most effective way to prevent death and hospital admission was to carry on prioritising people by age.

It said modelling studies for phase 2 of the vaccination programme also indicated that the speed of vaccine deployment was the most important factor in helping prevent severe illness and death.

This means that in phase 2, priority will be given in the following order:
- All those aged 40-49
- All those aged 30-39
- All those aged 18-29

These groups will be vaccinated once all those in phase 1 (the over-50s and most vulnerable) have received a jab.

 

[Chuckanut]

What I've been wondering is: If you get 1 vaccine, does that interfere with the action of the second vaccine , as your body will already be prepared to fight off what it thinks is the virus

Did they do actual antibody testing on you to determine if you are in fact protected ?

I heard a few months ago that somebody was going to test mixing the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines. First dose Pfizer and second dose Moderna, also visa-versa. Since then I haven't found anything about it.

There is no testing for ensure that one's body is producing the antibodies. However, the 24 hour wallop the 2nd shot delivered (tired, aches and soreness all over) seems to indicate that something in my body got stirred up. I'll assume that was my immune system

According to friends one issue with the 2nd dose seems to be finding somebody who has the matching vaccine and then finding the appointment. I am thankful my vaccine providers were well organized for both shots.

 

[Sojourner]

I feel like I won the lottery! The appointment is at a drugstore so I assume it will be the Moderna vaccine.

Not a valid assumption, IMHO. Here in Georgia (metro Atlanta area), the drugstore chain CVS is using the Pfizer vaccine.

 

[Sojourner]

The vaccine cells die off so it won't do this for ever, and after a period of time your cells that have been infected with the vaccine will die off and your own body will no longer produce the spike.

Yes... maybe. There certainly seems to be both clinical and theoretical uncertainty about the durability of the body's COVID immune response. What puzzles me about this is, why would the immune cells that have been marshalled by a COVID vaccine be (potentially) so much less durable than ones marshalled by a polio vaccine or a smallpox vaccine? I'm sure there is some very specific difference between how the immune system reacts to these different kinds of vaccines that makes one kind of immune response much less durable than others kinds. But I have yet to see an explanation for why that would be.

 

[explanade]

What I've been wondering is: If you get 1 vaccine, does that interfere with the action of the second vaccine , as your body will already be prepared to fight off what it thinks is the virus

Did they do actual antibody testing on you to determine if you are in fact protected ?

There are some tests being done to mix and match different vaccines.

As for antibody testing, they test a few people but obviously can't test the millions who are getting vaccinated.

But there have been studies done of samples of vaccinated people to look at their antibody titers x days or week after vaccination.

I'm sure someone is also studying how long the antibodies last, like 6 months, 1 year, etc. after vaccination.

I heard a few months ago that somebody was going to test mixing the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines. First dose Pfizer and second dose Moderna, also visa-versa. Since then I haven't found anything about it.

There is no testing for ensure that one's body is producing the antibodies. However, the 24 hour wallop the 2nd shot delivered (tired, aches and soreness all over) seems to indicate that something in my body got stirred up. I'll assume that was my immune system

According to friends one issue with the 2nd dose seems to be finding somebody who has the matching vaccine and then finding the appointment. I am thankful my vaccine providers were well organized for both shots.

In the UK, they're testing the AZ vaccine in combination with either the Sputnik V or the Pfizer vaccine as second shots.

On top of that, Pfizer has announced they are studying if a third shot of their vaccine will protect against all the different variants or if they need to reformulate their vaccine for them.

 

[Alan]

The UK trial has not yet started and will be restricted to the Pfizer and AZ vaccines. They are currently looking for volunteers.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-55924433

The Com-Cov study, run by the National Immunisation Schedule Evaluation Consortium, will involve more than 800 volunteers.
The study will be recruiting people aged 50 or older, who have not yet received a Covid vaccine, in London, Birmingham, Liverpool, Nottingham, Bristol, Oxford and Southampton.
Some will receive the Oxford jab followed by the Pfizer vaccine or vice versa, four or 12 weeks apart.
Other vaccines may be added as they are approved by regulators.

 

[ABQ2015]

Not a valid assumption, IMHO. Here in Georgia (metro Atlanta area), the drugstore chain CVS is using the Pfizer vaccine.

You were correct. I was pleased to receive the Pfizer vaccine. It was a small operation that went until noon and only about 60 doses were given. We were warned previously that most of the February vaccines would be second shots given the shortages. But Walgreens (and maybe CVS too) had been contracted to vaccinate the state LTCF residents and just finished up the LTCF second shots this week and had "leftovers".

So the state vaccination system sent out many first shot appointment notices midweek for Friday and Saturday appointments at drugstores. It helped that my city has the most LTCFs in the state. I was happy to get leftovers!

 

[RetireBy90]

Yes... maybe. There certainly seems to be both clinical and theoretical uncertainty about the durability of the body's COVID immune response. What puzzles me about this is, why would the immune cells that have been marshalled by a COVID vaccine be (potentially) so much less durable than ones marshalled by a polio vaccine or a smallpox vaccine? I'm sure there is some very specific difference between how the immune system reacts to these different kinds of vaccines that makes one kind of immune response much less durable than others kinds. But I have yet to see an explanation for why that would be.

The durability of the antibodies and related immunity is a separate question. I was responding to the question

What I've been wondering is: If you get 1 vaccine, does that interfere with the action of the second vaccine , as your body will already be prepared to fight off what it thinks is the virus

 

[Popeye]

Looks like they are slightly easing the cold storage requirements for the Pfizer vaccine. Another step in the right direction!

But in the past few weeks, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration reviewed data submitted by the companies on the stability of the doses at normal freezer temperatures (-25°C to -15°C), and on Feb. 25, the agency issued new guidance that says the vaccine can be safely shipped and stored for up to two weeks at these relatively higher temperatures.

https://time.com/5942452/pfizer-biontech-vaccine-cold-storage-fda/

 

[Alan]

Looks like they are slightly easing the cold storage requirements for the Pfizer vaccine. Another step in the right direction!



https://time.com/5942452/pfizer-biontech-vaccine-cold-storage-fda/

Thanks for this. My sister got the Pfizer vaccine at our local GP office this week, which surprised us as all our friends in town had received the AZ vaccine from our local GP. (Population of our town is under 10k)

 

[Hermit]

In scanning a few of the processes in different states, I am glad I just had to contact the local Albertsons/Safeway website and get an appointment. The system set up my second appt after the first shot which I could have shifted to later. I got my second shot at the local Safeway last Monday. The only involvement of the state seemed to be setting the age to 70 or older for the first wave. I am sure they had also determined what store got how many doses, etc. but no government silliness. Just went in to Safeway and got the shot just like any other vaccine. They did have an on-line form that I printed and filled out before I got there, but the form was available at Safeway.

 

[harllee]

In scanning a few of the processes in different states, I am glad I just had to contact the local Albertsons/Safeway website and get an appointment. The system set up my second appt after the first shot which I could have shifted to later. I got my second shot at the local Safeway last Monday. The only involvement of the state seemed to be setting the age to 70 or older for the first wave. I am sure they had also determined what store got how many doses, etc. but no government silliness. Just went in to Safeway and got the shot just like any other vaccine. They did have an on-line form that I printed and filled out before I got there, but the form was available at Safeway.

I was wondering about the vaccines in groceries and pharmacies. How do they handle the possibility that someone could have a serious allergic reaction? I had my vaccines at the local health department and they had an ambulance and emergency medical personnel onsite in case anyone had an allergic reaction. As someone with many allergies this reassured me.

 

[Koolau]

I was wondering about the vaccines in groceries and pharmacies. How do they handle the possibility that someone could have a serious allergic reaction? I had my vaccines at the local health department and they had an ambulance and emergency medical personnel onsite in case anyone had an allergic reaction. As someone with many allergies this reassured me.

Not a doc and have no special insight: My layman's understanding is that bad reactions are rare so far. You will likely be asked questions about your allergy profile at time of shot. I would assume the makers have a list of ingredients (don't think they use eggs anymore, but that used to be the big question - "Are you allergic to eggs.") I (myself) will be more worried about getting the shot rather than reacting to it but YMMV as always.

 

[audreyh1]

I was wondering about the vaccines in groceries and pharmacies. How do they handle the possibility that someone could have a serious allergic reaction? I had my vaccines at the local health department and they had an ambulance and emergency medical personnel onsite in case anyone had an allergic reaction. As someone with many allergies this reassured me.

Pharmacists have medical training. Pharmacies, including grocery store pharmacies, give plenty of vaccines, so must be experienced with this.

 

[iloveyoga]

I'm so excited. Mom was already scheduled for her second shot on Sunday, and I just got DH signed up for his second shot next Tuesday!

 

[travelover]

Pharmacists have medical training. Pharmacies, including grocery store pharmacies, give plenty of vaccines, so must be experienced with this.

I asked the pharmacist that gave me my first shot about this - he said they had epipens ready and extra staff in case anyone had a reaction in the Safeway store.