What makes the COVID-19 pandemic so strange is that in one sense, life has slowed down. While on the other hand, everything is changing so quickly it can be hard to keep up with the recent developments. Since March 2020, CiminoCare has been working diligently to implement new safety protocols based on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and local health department guidelines in order to respond and mitigate the risk of COVID-19 in our communities. Now we are moving into a new phase which includes offering the COVID-19 vaccine to staff and residents. Staff and Residents of assisted living fall into the High Priority category and we have been told that the vaccines are arriving soon.
Last week the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine received emergency approval from the Federal Drug Administration (FDA), and the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine is expected to be approved through the same FDA emergency process this week. Both of these vaccines are mRNA vaccines.
Additional information from the CDC
Excerpt from the CDC website Understanding and Explaining mRNA COVID-19 Vaccines:
Key Points to Share
- Like all vaccines, COVID-19 mRNA vaccines have been rigorously tested for safety before being authorized for use in the United States.
- mRNA technology is new, but not unknown, having been studied been studied for more than a decade.
- mRNA vaccines do not contain a live virus and do not carry a risk of causing disease in the vaccinated person.
- mRNA from the vaccine never enters the nucleus of the cell and does not affect or interact with a person’s DNA.
For more information, the following resources will provide you with education and information direct from the CDC:
CDC’s COVID-19 mRNA vaccine webpage.
https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/covid-19/hcp/mrna-vaccine-basics.html
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/recommendations/LTCF-residents.html
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/faq.html
CiminoCare Staff and Residents have Top Priority to Receive the Vaccinations
CiminoCare is registered with CVS Pharmacy to coordinate the onsite administration of the vaccine to staff and residents in all of our communities. We do not have specific dates yet, but we have been told that it will be very soon. The vaccine requires two doses. Depending on the vaccine, the second dose will be administered 21-28 days after the first dose. There is no cost to staff or residents to receive the vaccine.
We continue to follow our current COVID-19 safety protocols: screening, mask wearing, infection control procedures and testing until further notice.
We encourage everyone to educate themselves – review the research and discuss the vaccine with your primary care physicians and trusted healthcare professionals to answer any questions or concerns you may have.
