COVID Vaccine Update: April 22, 2021
All Oregonians age 16+ now eligible for vaccine
On Monday, all Oregonians age 16 and over became eligible for the vaccine. Sources for the vaccine include Lane County mass vaccination, pharmacies and appointments through Oregon Medical Group (for established patients – see below).
If you are still undecided about the vaccine, we encourage you to visit the Frequently Asked Questions section on our website, or on the CDC’s website. We strongly recommend that if you can get the vaccine, that you do. The vaccine is safe and effective. In contrast, the immediate and long-term dangers related to getting COVID-19 are very high. If you have a specific question about the vaccine and your health, please call your provider’s office so we can help.
Yes, we are offering vaccine appointments
We are excited and relieved to be able to offer our patients access to the COVID-19 vaccine. We are now scheduling appointments for established Oregon Medical Group patients ages 18 and older. Our ability to schedule you will vary as our supply changes, but if you are able to secure an appointment (at this time, we have openings!) you can count on us to have a dose for you. We will also schedule you for the second dose. To schedule your vaccine, please use the following number — not your provider’s line: 541-284-1113. Please note that you cannot schedule a vaccine online (our supplies are too dynamic for the fixed scheduling an online system demands).
Pfizer is the only option for 16-18 year-olds
At this time, Pfizer’s vaccine is the only one that is authorized for 16- to 18-year-olds. The Moderna and Pfizer vaccines are similar in design, and experts expect that Moderna’s version will be approved for use with younger people. The difference rests primarily in the testing involved for authorization: Moderna did not have sufficient data to qualify for use of people under 18. The Johnson & Johnson vaccine, which is still in ‘pause’ mode, is also only available for those 18 and over.
Our thoughts on the Johnson & Johnson pause
The relationship between the Johnson & Johnson vaccine and blood clots in six women who had received the vaccine are being investigated out of an abundance of caution. At this point, it is not known if the relationship is causal (the vaccine is linked to the clots) or coincidental. In any case, the occurrence in 6 women of 6.8 million is truly one in a million and providers at Oregon Medical Group are encouraged by the FDA’s ‘pause’. “Rather than worrying us about that vaccine, the pause gives us confidence in the tracking system and the intensity of oversight that this mass vaccination effort is getting from our health regulators,” said Chief Medical Officer Dr. Stacy Chance.
If you have received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine and develop severe headache, abdominal pain, leg pain, or shortness of breath, please contact your provider immediately.