SARASOTA COUNTY (WSNN) – The first COVID-19 vaccine gets FDA approved. After waiting for months, some people on the Suncoast are ready to get vaccinated.
This week, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for those age 16 and older. So, a handful of people lined up to get vaccinated at the Department of Health of Sarasota, Tuesday morning.
“I have an 18-month old daughter and I know she can’t get the vaccination, so I decided I’m going to get it myself just to protect her, and also my family as well,” Nelah Hill said.
Robert Brown and Nelah Hill say they didn’t feel comfortable with just the Emergency Use Authorization of the vaccine when it became available in December.
“We weren’t sure it was safe because of those stories, ‘Oh, it’s harming people and people are dying from it,'” Brown said. “But knowing that it’s less of a chance to have any effect to harm you, we’re more trusting.”
Brown and Hill got their first COVID-19 shot, Tuesday.
The FDA approved the vaccine based on safety and effectiveness data from a randomized, controlled clinical trial of thousands of people. Based on the results, the vaccine was 91-percent effective in preventing COVID-19 and saving lives.
“Now, that’s it’s FDA approved, there’s no reason not to get it since it’s free,” Trevor Alcorn said.
Alcorn got vaccinated before it was approved. But his girlfriend who just had a baby didn’t get vaccinated until now.
“My girlfriend, she’s not pregnant anymore, she can get her shot,” Alcorn said. “Now that it’s FDA approved, she feels more comfortable with that.”
Not only did the FDA fully approve the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine, but they also recently approved a third shot for those with a weaker immune system.
“With all these variants of COVID raging, it’s really of life importance to all of us to do it,” Scott Bushey said after getting his third shot.
If you are immunocompromised you can get a Moderna or Pfizer shot to boost your protection against COVID-19.
Wanda Darlington got her third shot, Tuesday and says, “It’s just a very scary time for people our age.”
The Pfizer vaccine is still under emergency use authorization for those 12 through 15 years-old.