Feb 4 Covid-19 Town Hall with Dr. Parry

February 5, 2021

We covered many topics during our Town Hall including a discussion about the vaccine, Stamford's and Connecticut’s response to the pandemic, and the near- and longer-term outlook for Covid-19. As always, Dr. Parry provided lots of useful information. If you scroll down, I’ve included some highlights of the conversation.

 

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Highlights

  • It’s important to continue to practice social distancing, mask wearing, avoid indoor gatherings, and follow other precautions as vaccine distribution continues—even if you’ve already been vaccinated. We don’t know yet whether vaccinated people can still spread the disease asymptomatically (without getting sick themselves).
  • The two vaccines available (Pfizer and Moderna) are both 95% effective and present very low risk for serious side effects. You may experience “nuisance” side effects (like a sore arm).
  • Stamford Health has vaccinated 15,000 people so far and receives between 5,000 and 6,000 vaccine doses per week.
  • A third wave of COVID-19 spread is likely to happen before the pandemic ends.
  • The general public vaccinations will likely begin in the summer and continue into fall of 2021.
  • While you should try to get appointments for your second vaccine dose as close as possible, you don’t need to be exact. However, you should try very hard to keep the second shot within 42 days of the first.
  • If you qualify for a vaccination and have issues securing an appointment, keep trying! Often if you’re close to the 42-day outer limit and worried you won’t get an appointment in time, you can contact me directly or call Stamford Health’s vaccination help line 203.276.7300 (Monday to Friday, 9:00 am - 4:00 pm)