Experts weigh in on vaccination questions during Bustos town hall

Everyone who can get one should.

That’s the advice medical professionals gave Wednesday during a virtual town hall on the COVID-19 vaccine hosted by U.S. Rep. Cheri Bustos of the 17th Congressional District.

The town hall featured Monica Hendrickson, Peoria’s Public Health Administrator, and Sandy Salverson, Vice President of Pharmacy Operations at OSF HealthCare.

More than 100 questions were submitted for the town hall, with about a third asking about eligibility for the vaccine, Bustos said.

“The biggest issue that we have is we don’t have enough volume of vaccine right now,” Hendrickson said.

Phase 1A focused on health care workers and first responders on the front lines, Phase 1B targets those 65 and older as well as K-12 teachers, and 1C will include those age 16 to 64 with pre-existing health conditions that make them more at risk for the virus, among others.

The start of Phase 1C is a moving target, as 1B represents a large population group and will take weeks to cover, Hendrickson said. The department has about 1,200 vaccine appointments a week, and those slots often fill up within an hour, she added.

Bustos is optimistic with how quickly President Joe Biden is working to increase vaccine distribution, and he announced Tuesday that they will be purchasing an additional 200 million doses likely to arrive during the summer. That will bring the U.S. supply to about 600 million doses, and the goal is to vaccinate at least 100 million people within his first 100 days in office and 300 million by late summer or early fall.

He also took executive action to implement the Defense Production Act, which calls on manufacturers and companies to create products to assist with vaccine distribution, such as making syringes.

“Industry throughout the country will be involved in this response,” Bustos said.

Salverson is confident that the mass vaccine process will take less than a year to complete.

The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are about 95% effective, the highest rate health officials have seen for a vaccine, and the full immunity kicks in about two weeks after people receive their second dose, she said. There’s some immunity after the first dose, but getting the second dose is crucial.

People should continue to wear masks, even after they are fully vaccinated, to decrease the likelihood of spread, Hendrickson said.

The hope is that supply will catch up with demand and the vaccine will be widely available from different outlets, as is the flu shot each year, she said.

A Sterling teacher submitted a question of whether it was fair to vaccinate teachers before those who are more vulnerable.

Teachers were higher on the list because schools are at high risk for fast infection that can lead to super spreader events, Hendrickson said.

“Teachers were selected for a reason, and so were people 65 and older,” she said.

A Rock Falls resident asked if people who have already tested positive for COVID-19 need to get vaccinated.

There’s evidence of a lingering immunity from those who become infected, but it’s temporary and they should still pursue a vaccine, about 90 days after recovering from coronavirus, Salverson said. It’s also possible to be infected more than once.

“If you’re able to and can, we want you to get vaccinated,” Henrickson added.

In the U.S., COVID-19 has claimed more than 425,000 lives and infected more than 25 million people.

Bustos became infected with COVID-19 in November from her husband, Gerry, who’s the Rock Island County Sheriff, and said the vaccine is crucial to returning to normal.

“As someone who had it, I can tell you the vaccine I think will be a savior to our nation so we can get on with our lives and not worry about getting COVID,” she said.