3.6% Of Marylanders Have Missed Their Second COVID-19 Vaccine Dose, Better Than National Average
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (WJZ/CNN) -- About 3.6% of Marylanders have missed their second dose appointment for the coronavirus vaccination, the Maryland Department of Health said Tuesday.
That's better than the national average: data shows about 8% of Americans have missed that important second dose -- up from about 3.4% in March.
The vaccines by Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna require two doses -- administered three and four weeks apart, respectively -- to be considered fully effective.
Johnson & Johnson only requires one-dose, but that vaccine was only recently reauthorized for use by the CDC and FDA after a reports of a rare blood clot in some recipients.
On Tuesday, several local jurisdictions addressed the concerns about people missing their second doses.
Anne Arundel County Health Officer Dr. Nilesh Kalyanaraman said they haven't seen many "no shows" for second shots.
"I know that we're doing better than the national average," Dr. Kalyanaraman said. "But we are tracking that."
In Baltimore County, Health Officer Dr. Gregory WM Branch said they have seen some people not return for second doses.
"We have always had people who did not return for their second dose for different reasons," Dr. Branch said.
He said normally the county will call people and let them know they missed their shot and help them reschedule with the county or with another jurisdiction, if needed.
"You got to remember, we don't control which vaccine they get," Branch said. "So if I have Pfizer and you need a second dose of Moderna, we assist you in getting that second dose if you missed your second appointment."
For the latest information on coronavirus go to the Maryland Health Department's website or call 211. You can find all of WJZ's coverage on coronavirus in Maryland here.