What to do if winter weather conditions are delaying your COVID-19 vaccine

If your COVID-19 vaccine appointment has been postponed or canceled due to winter storms – or, really, for whatever reason – experts say there is no need to panic.

Chances are, you’ll get a call from someone to reschedule your appointment. And if your second dose has been delayed, it’s important to know that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) allows some leeway in the time interval between your first and second doses.

Severe weather hit the country from coast to coast this week, bringing heavy snowfall, ice and freezing temperatures, and the National Weather Service said another storm was developing. More than 100 million Americans were under winter storm warnings, winter storm watches or winter weather advisories as of February 17.

The first wave of bad weather caused power outages and dangerous driving conditions that resulted in the closure of vaccination clinics in many states, including Texas, Missouri and New Hampshire. Other states have reported a delay in the delivery of their vaccines.

“I understand public health officials are committed to doing everything they can” to find those whose appointments have been canceled so they can reschedule them, said Fred Campbell, MD, specialist in internal medicine at the Health Science Center at the University of Texas at San Antonio. , where the winter weather has closed the city.

“We are increasing the supply, so I have every reason to believe that there will be more than enough vaccine for everyone,” added Campbell.

CDC allows up to six weeks between doses

The COVID-19 vaccines currently licensed in the United States require two doses, spaced several weeks apart, for recipients to achieve maximum immunity. The second dose of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is expected to be administered 21 days after the first; for Moderna, the recommended interval between doses is 28 days. However, the CDC says it’s okay for the second dose to be given up to six weeks after the first.

“You don’t have to start over” if your second dose appointment has been canceled, said William Schaffner, MD, an infectious disease specialist at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee. “You can get your second dose even if it’s a little late.”