Q&A of the Day – What each of the vaccines do & don’t do for you
Each day I feature a listener question sent by one of these methods.
Email: brianmudd@iheartmedia.com
Parler & Twitter: @brianmuddradio
Today’s entry: @brianmuddradio Did I hear you say that Pfizer and Moderna vaccines help prevent getting Covid-19 or did I misunderstand you?
Bottom Line: You heard me correctly and you raise an important point regarding the efficacy of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines contrasted with the new Johnson and Johnson vaccines. What they’re capable of doing and the differences between them. First, let’s reset by talking about what all vaccines are designed to do. First priority, prevention. Second priority, minimizing or eliminating severe effects if contracted. Vaccines work by subjecting you to a small sample of the contagion for the purpose of your body successfully fighting it, producing antibodies in the process which stay with you and are ready to successfully attack the contagion should you come across it again - preventing you from becoming infected. So yes, the primary function of any vaccine is prevention. The secondary function of vaccines is to minimize the effects of a contagion. In the event you become infected after receiving a vaccine, the hope and expectation is that the antibodies are effective at warding off the worst effects of the contagion by giving your immune system a better basis for fighting the virus once it’s contracted. This is why for example, even with the flu vaccine averaging only around 45% efficacy, the medical establishment says everyone should get one annually. Even if it fails to prevent infections more often than not, it’s still in theory, helpful in minimizing the effects. Now let’s take a look the differences between the three vaccines.
- Johnson & Johnson: 66% effective at prevention, 85% at preventing severe effects, 100% at preventing death
- Moderna: 94% effective at prevention & essentially 100% at preventing severe effects/deaths
- Pfizer: 95% effective at prevention & essentially 100% at preventing severe effects/deaths
Of course, the other big difference is the single dose schedule for the J&J compared to the two-dose schedule required for that level of efficacy for the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines. When you compare the three of them side by side by side it’s understandable why all three of them are now being used. If our top priority is preventing death – they're all equal at doing it. From there the consideration is meaningful regarding prevention. And that’s where you can make your own determinations regarding the risk/reward/opportunity of each.
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