3rd Dose Of COVID-19 Vaccine To Be Available Next Month
DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - At a time when health officials continue to urge North Texans to get vaccinated, there's new information about when a third COVID-19 vaccine dose will be available to those who've already been immunized.
Susybelle Gosslee of Dallas proudly carries her COVID-19 vaccination card that she's kept close to her since early this year.
"I got vaccinated as soon as I could," said Gosslee. "I ended up having to go to Athens, Texas to the CVS there."
But the 76-year-old says she's had concerns about how it long it will last.
"It has entered my mind especially when I read about the shots the vaccines in the news," she said.
Gosslee hopes to be among those getting a third booster shot as early as mid-September when Dallas County says it will be available.
"I think it's a great idea if the science says we need it and that's what I'm going to do," she said. "I really trust the science."
Only those who are eight months removed from their second Pfizer or Moderna vaccination will qualify or eight months after their first dose of the Johnson and Johnson vaccine.
Doctors say it's not something healthy people will have an urgent need to get.
"Normal, healthy people do not need a third dose at this time," said Dr. Mark Casanova of the Dallas County Medical Society. "We've also seen news reports many experts say everybody will need a third booster dose at some point and time."
Dr. Casanova says while measles and mumps have vaccines that can last a lifetime, tetanus, diphtheria and whooping cough are among the illnesses, like COVID-19, that also need a third dose to remain effective.
"The first vaccine is an introduction, the second vaccine primes the pump, it gets the body ready moving and grooving with a healthy immune system, that's all we need with a weakened immune system sometimes when you turn the crank to start the engine it stalls," he said.
Dr. Casanova said as much as 95% of those hospitalized in DFW for COVID-19 are unvaccinated.
Those who receive a third dose will have the most protection, and more importantly, peace of mind.
