You’ve been vaccinated, so what do you need to know now?

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) – So far, more than 1.7 million Texans have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine and more than 20 million Texans are now eligible to be vaccinated.

As the vaccine becomes more available, some people are eager to get it. But what happens when you do it and when is it fully effective? We get answers to your immunization questions from Dr. James McDeavitt, Dean of Clinical Affairs at Baylor College of Medicine.

After being vaccinated, when am I fully immunized?

“The answer to this is, regardless of the last dose – [whether it] is the second dose of Moderna, the second dose of Pfizer, or the Johnson & Johnson dose. From there you have to wait two weeks. Then after about two weeks you should be fully immunized and have all the benefits of the vaccine, ”McDeavitt said.

He also warned that even when vaccinated you will still need to take precautions.

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“We still have some concerns about the emerging variants. The variants we have right now are the British strain, the Brazilian strain and the South African strain. The US vaccines are actually quite effective against the strains right now. So you’re relatively protected. against strains… those but for now I’d still say you have to be careful, ”McDeavitt said.

What can I do now that I’m vaccinated, according to the CDC?

“If everyone was vaccinated, the CDC said it was okay to take your mask off and hug and relax your distances,” McDeavitt said.

What if you are vaccinated and others are not?

“The CDC said for small private gatherings. You can walk down the street and visit people who aren’t vaccinated in low-risk groups,” McDeavitt said.

McDeavitt also recommends that you wear a mask and maintain your six-foot distance if not everyone is vaccinated.

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How important will your vaccine card be?

“Time will tell, but stick to it. I had mine laminated and put it in my passports so I wouldn’t lose it. Maybe it’s important to book plane tickets. “It will probably be important for at least international travel. So I would definitely keep this documentation,” McDeavitt said.

When will we achieve collective immunity?

“Keep in mind that nobody knows what this mythical herd immunity number really is, people say it’s 65%, 70%, 75%, we don’t really know. We’ll know when we get there because we’ll see our viral count improve dramatically, “McDeavitt said. He adds that he expects us to achieve collective immunity in June or July.

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