Benefits of Receiving the COVID-19 Vaccine
As more vaccines are being produced and becoming available in the United States, we understand people are concerned about getting vaccinated. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirms that although these vaccines are being produced quickly, their stringent safety processes and procedures remain in place to ensure all vaccines are safe to receive.
As we fight to end the COVID-19 pandemic, getting vaccinated is critical. Stopping this pandemic will require using all the tools available to us including social distancing, natural immunity and vaccinations. See below to learn more from the CDC and Duly Health and Care on the benefits of getting vaccinated:
COVID-19 vaccination will help keep you from getting COVID-19
- All COVID-19 vaccines currently available in the United States have been shown to be highly effective at preventing COVID-19.
- Based on what we know about vaccines for other diseases and early data from clinical trials, experts believe that getting a COVID-19 vaccine may also help keep you from getting seriously ill, even if you do contract COVID-19.
- Getting vaccinated yourself may also protect people around you, particularly people at increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19.
COVID-19 vaccination is a safer way to help build protection
- COVID-19 can have serious, life-threatening complications, and there is no way to know how COVID-19 will affect you. If you get sick, you could spread the disease to friends, family and others around you. Getting vaccinated will help prevent these complications.
- Getting COVID-19 may offer some natural protection, known as immunity. Current evidence suggests that reinfection with the virus that causes COVID-19 is uncommon in the 90 days after initial infection. However, experts don’t know for sure how long this protection lasts, and the risk of severe illness and death from COVID-19 far outweighs any benefits of natural immunity. COVID-19 vaccination will help protect you by creating an antibody (immune system) response without having to experience sickness.
COVID-19 vaccination will be an important tool to help stop the pandemic
- Without a vaccine it could take up 2 – 3 more years for our country to reach herd immunity status on our own with an estimated 600,000 more COVID-19 related deaths in that timeframe. Getting the vaccine will help reduce that timeline and save lives.
- Wearing masks and social distancing help reduce your chance of being exposed to the virus or spreading it to others, but these measures are not enough. Vaccines will work with your immune system so it will be ready to fight the virus if you are exposed and help end this pandemic.