Understanding The Vaccination

With Spring Break and Family Gathering Holidays Upon Us, U.S. Rep. Anthony Brown Hosts Town Hall Discussion To Answer COVID-19 Vaccination Questions

U.S. Rep. Anthony Brown

Updated: March 29 at 6:10 p.m.

By Raoul Dennis

In a one-hour town hall discussion held March 25 United States Representative Anthony Brown (D-MD 4th Dist) and Dr. Josh Sharfstein fielded questions about the vaccination, its availability, safety measures, and other concerns from community residents.

Brown announced that the county and the state should continue to expect financial support from the federal government as part of the national $1.9 trillion relief effort. Some $178 million, among other funding, has been allocated to Prince George’s County, he said.

Questions ranged from the safety of vaccinated travelers to the long-term effects of the vaccine. With spring break and religious holidays now occurring, many of the questions had to do with the safety of family and social gatherings.

Dr. Joshua Sharfstein

Dr. Sharfstein, Vice Dean for Public Health Practice and Community Engagement at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, reported that small gatherings among vaccinated people are low risk for the spread of coronavirus. He further established that people who are not vaccinated coming into contact with elders who are vaccinated should also be okay—low risk—as long as the gatherings are small groups and people continue to mask and wash hands. Dr. Sharfstein further explained that vaccinated adults and grandparents should be able to spend time with their children and grandchildren who don’t have the vaccination, but again emphasized that the groups remain small and, where possible, be held outdoors.

Donald Taylor, who is interested in the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, wanted to know why residents are not yet allowed to choose which vaccine they receive.

“it’s not possible to know in advance which sites will offer which vaccine,” said Dr. Sharfstein. “The good news is that all three vaccines have very strong records of safety and effectiveness.”

Dr. Sharfstein said that all three vaccinations dramatically reduce the rate of hospitalization and, in the large clinical studies, no vaccinated individuals died from COVID-19.

Brown and Sharfstein also explained that the vaccination was available to all residents regardless of income, health coverage plan, or citizenship status.

One of the questions most often asked had to do with concerns over how quickly the vaccination was developed and its safety.

Dr. Sharfstein explained the reason the vaccinations were developed so quickly is two-fold.

First, the RNA research relied upon for vaccine development was in the works for several years before COVID-19 struck. Second, millions of dollars in federal funding accelerated the research and development timeline. He pointed out that ordinarily, scientists have to wait for months between each stage of testing, as companies decide whether the evidence gathered is worth continued investment. Through each stage, many companies have to complete funding requests in order to move to the next level of development. In this case, the government guaranteed that each stage would be funded allowing medical scientists to proceed to the next stages without delay. The result was a rapid timeline without cutting corners in the research itself. The money was there and available for research to seamlessly continue.

The state is moving into the next phase of vaccine distribution to include all Marylanders aged 60 and over.

As a number of listeners who are eligible for the vaccination expressed their complaint and concern that they have not been able to access the vaccine, the congressman offered direct communication with his office to address such discrepancies: (301) 458-2600.

Questions continue to pour in from around the nation regarding how long the vaccine’s protection from COVID will last. Those concerns were equally present at the town hall session hosted by Congressman Brown.

“We don’t know how long the vaccine’s protection will last, so booster shots may be needed,” Dr. Sharfstein replied to a caller. “But given how dangerous COVID-19 can be there is every reason to get the protection today.”