It is difficult to choose the brand of vaccine you receive

MADISON, Wisconsin. – Many people have asked News 3 Now, through our Vaccine HQ question center, if you could choose which vaccine you will receive – Pfizer, Moderna or Johnson & Johnson.

The short answer is no. The vaccine available at the time of your appointment is the vaccine you will receive.

“At this point where we are, the best thing you can do for yourself and for others is get vaccinated with whatever vaccine you have,” said Dr Matt Anderson of UW Health.

Anderson said it is difficult for a patient to choose which brand of vaccine they will receive because many vaccinators only receive one vaccine at a time. And the medics are trying to get as many shots as possible in the arms as quickly as possible.

For example, UW Health only received Pfizer until this week, when they received their first shipment from Johnson & Johnson. Anderson expects this to be the only shipment from Johnson & Johnson the healthcare system will receive.

Some people might prefer Johnson & Johnson because it’s just one shot.

“We would all love to have more Johnson & Johnson available in the community right now, I think the supply is still coming in here in the next few weeks,” Anderson said.

He said DHS has made it known that Johnson & Johnson will mainly go to small pharmacies, public health departments and rural areas.

But he said people shouldn’t wait for Johnson & Johnson to be available. If you do, that means more time to risk catching the virus, and longer until we’re all back to normal.

If you need Johnson & Johnson due to an allergy to mRNA vaccines, which is rare, Anderson recommends that you talk to your provider. The supplier can contact their partners to find one for you.

“But if someone was just adamant and there wasn’t a medical reason why they needed to (get Johnson & Johnson), it would really require reaching out or getting closer to different vaccinators and ‘try to know where and where. And they may have to wait a little longer, ”Anderson said.

In the future, you may be able to choose your vaccine.

“Six months, a year from now, let’s say we have to have a booster or something. There might be that possibility, but right now they’re actually three very effective vaccines that prevent serious illness, hospitalization. They are really equivalent in that regard, ”said Anderson.

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