How Many Texans Have Received the COVID-19 Vaccine?
I got an email this week from the clinic that my family uses saying they now have COVID-19 vaccines available.
Beginning in January, Texas established large vaccination sites or hubs around the state. The goal of all these vaccine spots is to provide more people the vaccine and a simpler way to sign up for an appointment. Providers were to focus on vaccinating areas in Texas hardest hit by COVID-19 and prioritize certain vulnerable people like seniors and those with medical conditions.
There are 2 phases under which individuals are eligible to receive a vaccine at these hubs right now.
Phase 1A is frontline healthcare workers and residents at long-term care facilities, and Phase 1B is people over 65 or with a chronic medical condition that puts them at increased risk for severe illness resulting from COVID-19 infection. Eligibility was recently expanded to include educators and child care workers, and now it looks like those age 50 and over are eligible as well.
My wife has already taken the first dose of the Moderna vaccine and is set to take the second dose next month.
She tells me she doesn't have any side effects besides being moody, and that it was an overall good experience.
The three Covid-19 vaccines authorized by the FDA and recommended for use in the US are the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine, the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine, and Moderna's NIAID vaccine.
As of today, 127.8 million does have been distributed all over the US.
According to Our World in Data, 95.7 million Americans have received at least the first dose, and 32.9 million Americans are fully vaccinated,
The Texas Tribune reports that over 4.7 million people in the Lone Star State have received the first dose, and about 2.5 million (or 8.8% of Texas' population) are fully vaccinated.
I am a little nervous about taking the vaccine, but I understand that I need to take it to protect myself and others. If you're eligible, I hope you'll consider being vaccinated as well. Let's do what we can to put this pandemic behind us.
LOOK: Answers to 30 common COVID-19 vaccine questions
While much is still unknown about the coronavirus and the future, what is known is that the currently available vaccines have gone through all three trial phases and are safe and effective. It will be necessary for as many Americans as possible to be vaccinated in order to finally return to some level of pre-pandemic normalcy, and hopefully these 30 answers provided here will help readers get vaccinated as soon they are able.
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