Why Wearing a Mask Is Still Important After Getting a Vaccine?

After the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted emergency use authorization to Pfizer, COVID-19 vaccination might start next week. However, many are asking if they still need to wear a mask after getting a shot.

Wearing of face mask is one of the measures that the World Health Organization (WHO) and other disease experts recommended to lessen virus transmission.

This is scientifically proven effective, along with other COVID-19 measures. But should you stop wearing a mask once you get vaccinated?

Read also: Fauci Urges Continuing COVID-19 Measures Even if Vaccine is Already Approved

Wearing of Mask

Infectious disease experts said that a person still needs to wear a face mask and practice social distancing even after getting the vaccine. That means that being vaccinated does not mean that a person will have full protection against the virus because the vaccine's effect is not immediate.

According to a published report in Fox News, both Pfizer and Moderna's vaccines are given twice. Pfizer's second shot is given after three weeks, while Moderna's vaccine is after four weeks. They both clarified that the effect of the vaccine is not immediate.

People who get the vaccine are expected to get some level of protection within a couple of weeks after the first shot, but full protection may only happen weeks after the second shot.

Thus, everyone would be given a COVID-19 vaccine kit to know when to get the second shot.

One of the reasons why a person needs to wear a mask, practice social distancing, and observe other COVID-19 measures, is the fact that it is still not known if Pfizer or Moderna's vaccines could protect people from the infection or just the symptoms.

Experts Recommend To Continue to Wear the Mask

Deborah Fuller, a vaccine expert at the University of Washington, said even if a person is vaccinated, there is a chance they could still get infected, or they could transmit the virus. But she added that the transmission could be much lower.

It can also be remembered in a previous report of Latin Post that Dr. Anthony Fauci, the country's leading disease and infectious expert, appealed to everyone to continue wearing a face mask and practice social distancing even after getting a vaccine.

Based on the effectiveness of the vaccines of Pfizer and Moderna, Moncef Slaoui, the head of the U.S. vaccine development effort, said the country could reach herd immunity in May.

However, herd immunity might not be achieved if either Pfizer or Moderna will have problems in its raw supply. One of the challenges for the manufacturers is how fast they could produce the vaccines.

Early this month, reports said Pfizer cut down its production targets for its vaccine from 100 million to 50 million because of a lack of raw materials for its supply chain.

Meanwhile, everyone should be aware that getting a vaccine is not an assurance that it will immediately give a person full protection against the virus.

There is also still no clear data if the vaccine would be 100 percent safe and effective for everyone or across all ages.