Getting My Rona Vaccine. Essex County

I know 2 people with diabetes (1 type 1, other type 2) and they are both fine. One has had both shots, other first only.

That story does not make sense. #1 how would this vax create a blood sugar spike? Does it contain A LOT of sugar. My diabetic is quite knowledgeable and this info (if true) has not been disclosed.

Number 2. You don't just die immediately from a blood sugar spike. There has to be more to the story.

Number 3. Has your diabetic friend read all of the MANY, documented stories of people with diabetes whose bodies could not handle covid and died as a result?

Thanks for the info. As with anybody that wants to believe conspiracy theories they don't really need proof.  

This is the only thing I saw about diabetes and the vaccine:

Because of the mild symptoms experienced by some, it is important to stay vigilant about blood sugar levels for the first 24 to 48 hours after receiving the vaccine. The symptoms may impact your BG, so check your levels frequently, stay hydrated, and be familiar with your sick day routine.

I couldn't find any harmful correlation.

jfinnegan said:

Thanks for the info. As with anybody that wants to believe conspiracy theories they don't really need proof.  

The diabetic does need reassurance.  As with any other medical issue, it is best to check with the doctor treating the person for diabetes.

joan_crystal said:

The diabetic does need reassurance.  As with any other medical issue, it is best to check with the doctor treating the person for diabetes.

 Agreed. He should check with his doctor. I would expect the likelihood of serious side effects from the vaccine is probably much less than if they actually caught Covid. Anybody I know that has gotten the vaccine hasn't had any significant issues, but none of them have diabetes.

we got our first shots today at the sears location-what a well run facility!

see you again in exactly 1 month!!

Long term diabetic, type 2, here. 
With my first shot no reaction at all ( not even a sore arm) and no spikes (I test 3X a day)

Still waiting for my rescheduled appointment, even though originally I was scheduled for two hours later than my husband on the same day.  On Monday, I was told I'd get my rescheduled appointment 24 to 48 hours after the original cancelled date.  I called the EssexCovid number this evening and was essentially given no new information, then hung up on.  The good news is that my husband's job has been postponed to March 1st, and he's getting vaccinated this week, so he'll have a chance to build up a little immunity. 

"On Monday, I was told I'd get my rescheduled appointment 24 to 48 hours after the original cancelled date"

When we had issues with not being notified, I showed up in person and spoke with the site manager. If I were you, I would go with him (with all your email documentation) and explain the situation. Glad it is going to work for him. It really is a relief when the "high risk" people in your life get it!

My appointment finally comes up today. woohoo!

Boy that was a long needle. Doing my 15 minutes now.

drummerboy said:

Boy that was a long needle. Doing my 15 minutes now.

You didn't post a follow-up so I'm assuming the worst.

I wonder if they'll start to incorporate the J&J vaccine which seems destined for EUA. Also easier to transport and store. 

Will people be given a choice? Would you take a single shot that is not as effective, but apparently 100% effective at preventing hospitalization and death?

I survived ok. I thought that needle was going to hurt but I barely felt it.

The place was pretty empty. There might have been more staff than vaccinees when I went.

I doubt people will get a choice, but you never know.

drummerboy said:

I survived ok. I thought that needle was going to hurt but I barely felt it.

The place was pretty empty. There might have been more staff than vaccinees when I went.

I doubt people will get a choice, but you never know.

Then you must have been there during a lull... plenty busy 75 minutes earlier!

mrincredible said:

You didn't post a follow-up so I'm assuming the worst.

I wonder if they'll start to incorporate the J&J vaccine which seems destined for EUA. Also easier to transport and store. 

Will people be given a choice? Would you take a single shot that is not as effective, but apparently 100% effective at preventing hospitalization and death?

 Interesting question. I would go with the original 2.

susan1014 said:

drummerboy said:

I survived ok. I thought that needle was going to hurt but I barely felt it.

The place was pretty empty. There might have been more staff than vaccinees when I went.

I doubt people will get a choice, but you never know.

Then you must have been there during a lull... plenty busy 75 minutes earlier!

Yeah, I'm sure it was just a lull, but it was striking to see how empty it was, since it's such a huge space.

And FWIW, other than a slightly sore arm, I've had no other side-effects.

I am looking forward to the J&J one shot--I am healthy and my other risk factors are modest. I am glad my high risk family members have received both Moderna shots, though.

I wouldn't hesitate to take any of the authorized vaccines. If J&J coming on line expedites my wife's receipt of a vaccination, Ill be more than happy that she gets the J&J one shot.

BTW I noticed that the FDA has authority to approve the Novavax shot based on European trials but they are going to wait until Novavax's U.S. trials are done, which puts it off at least a couple of months.  Seems unfortunate to me.  Would be a great one to punch for both J&J and Novavax to come on line quickly, especially if we are in a race against variants.

I was wondering - is there much waste or leftover at the end of the day?  Or can it carryover to the next day?  Could there be a stand by list for people that could take the place of the "no shows"?

I’ve been told that unused vaccine is sent to another open site for use and then when that site closes, it is sent to the jail or other congregate living site under county jurisdiction. 

There is nothing left at the end of the day.  At all.

That's great!  How's the volunteer situation?  Need more?

I think they will eventually need more.   But they are moving towards a model where they prefer repeat volunteers so that they don't have to train so many people every day.  This means that the number of new volunteers used is lower on a daily basis which then stretches out the existing volunteer list for a longer period of time.

FYI...last Friday thru Sunday about 3300 shots were given out in Sears alone.  118k+ so far across the sites combined.

Well, today it is finally my turn (thanks to Sbenois for help in understanding sign-up process/timing).  However, when I see that:

• NJ has administered approx. 1.4 million first shots, and 700K 2nd shots.
• Biden announcement that there will be enough vaccine for all adult Americans by the end of May

NJ will need to ramp up the process considerably to achieve this.

NJ has been limited by supply of vaccine, not supply of locations, medical staff, volunteers, or those wanting to get vaccinated.  Now that a third vaccine has been approved, number of vaccinated residents should rise substantially.

To vaccinate 4 million people twice in 90 days, will require 85-90K per day across the entire state.

Assuming that the vaccine arrives on schedule, can the vaccination centers handle this flow of people?

tomcat said:

To vaccinate 4 million people twice in 90 days, will require 85-90K per day across the entire state.

Assuming that the vaccine arrives on schedule, can the vaccination centers handle this flow of people?

 I think you're misunderstanding something. The "end of May" marker is not a deadline to vaccinate all of those people - it's rather to achieve an adequate supply to do so. At that point, supply will not be an issue the way it is now.

(this was in response to Tomcat, not you DB)

You are forgetting that the vaccine will be given in places like CVS, Walgreens, Shop Rite, etc etc etc.    It's not just the vaccine centers that will be doing all of the lifting.   And many people will be getting the one shot J&J vaccine which effectively counts as two in your math.

There are roughly 350 CVS stores in NJ.   If J&J supply is available and each store did just 10 shots an hour over a 12 hour day that they are open, that is 42,000 shots a day right there.   Roughly double it with Walgreens in the mix.   Add Shop Rite, SMG, hospitals, new mega-sites and yes it is doable.

Of course every day we don't have enough vaccine is a day that the per day requirement goes up and J&J ramp up is going to be slow through end of March.

But at the end of the day, the world won't end if it takes until end of June or July or August.   Nothing wrong with Joe being aspirational.

By the way, Essex County's 5 current sites are currently getting upwards of 4200 people done in a 5-6 hour day.   Adding hours, volunteers and more chairs could see a doubling of that number with no issue.   And that is just Essex.   

Yes it is doable if there is a team effort.   And vaccine.   

sbenois: You say “ if each store did just 10 shots an hour over a 12 hour day..”

That’s a very big if.

Have you ever observed the activity behind a CVS pharmacy counter? At the one in Maplewood across from CHS, the pharmacists are the only employees who administer vaccinations. They are overworked, often juggling multiple tasks simultaneously. The ones I’ve observed in action there the last few years are efficient and professional in the face of trying circumstances.

Of course, if every CVS hires more personnel dedicated to covid vaccination, it’ll be a different story. Are as many as 10 vaccinations an hour being administered in each tent at Sears? Not from what I observed. And how many different on-site personnel need to interact with each vaccine recipient at Sears? How much government financial support does CVS have to work with for this project (if you know)?

DickF-Have you been to one of the state covid mega-sites? They make Sears look like small potatoes.

Johnson & Johnson's 100 million doses covers 100 million adults. If they are able to increase this by working with Merck, say 20%, right there you have half of U.S. adults covered (approx 240mm)

79 mm shots of Moderna & Pfizer have already been given, with more than 26 million adults given two shots to date. So another 27mm adults are within a month of being fully vaccinated. 

That means we need about another 110 million doses of Moderna and Pfizer to be provided in the next three months, compared with 79 mm for the first 3 months. Pfizer alone has committed to provide 300 million total doses to the US. This commitment increased from 200mm in Feb.

I think we're good to go