A new series from Vitality
Now that there are currently two authorized and recommended vaccinations for COVID-19 in the United States, there are understandably a lot of questions regarding our “return to normal” after we’ve been vaccinated. While the vaccine does offer much hope in the effort to combat the massive health and economic consequences of the pandemic, it’s important to remember that the vaccine is not the solution to the pandemic – it is an important part of the solution. As the Swiss Cheese model indicates, no single preventive behavior completely prevents against the spread of disease, because each one is imperfect (i.e. each piece of cheese has holes). It is the combination of multiple preventive behaviors, including hand washing, social distancing and wearing masks, i.e., multiple pieces of Swiss cheese, that will improve our ability to combat COVID-19. So, while discussions about the COVID-19 vaccine are all around us, and while the vaccine is an essential layer of Swiss cheese, we must keep up with our other layers of prevention both before and after we are vaccinated.
While the supply of vaccines is expected to increase in the coming weeks and months, it is currently limited. As such, the CDC has issued recommendations as to which groups of people should be offered the vaccine first; however, each state gets to determine its own vaccination distribution. While you may not be immediately eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccination at this time, it is essential that you remain informed about your local area’s vaccine roll-out to understand your place in line.
For more information about when you will be eligible to receive the vaccine, please refer to your local health department’s website.
For more information about the vaccine, please refer to the CDC’s COVID-19 Vaccine page.
For more information on the administration of COVID-19 vaccines in your state, please refer to the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Vaccine Tracker.
Stay tuned for more information about COVID-19 and the vaccine from Vitality in the coming weeks.
Lianne Jacobs, Product Analyst, has a master’s degree in public health from Yale University. She is the only indoor cycling instructor who can’t ride a bike. She enjoys traveling the world, laughing at her own jokes, and tricking her husband into eating baked goods made with hidden vegetables.
