COVID-19 Vaccines

Page last updated on 9/18/2024.

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COVID-19 can cause severe illness or death.You can also continue to have long-term health issues after infection. Getting the COVID-19 vaccine is a safe and dependable way to build immunity to COVID-19 without having to get the illness. Vaccination can reduce your risk of hospitalization or death from COVID-19.

  • Different types of vaccines work in different ways to provide protection.
  • All COVID-19 vaccines prompt our bodies to recognize and help protect us from the virus that causes COVID-19.

None of these vaccines can give you COVID-19.

  • Vaccines do not use any live virus.
  • Vaccines cannot cause infection with the virus that causes COVID-19 or other viruses.
  • Sometimes after vaccination, the process of building immunity can cause symptoms, such as fever. These symptoms are normal signs the body is building immunity.

Currently, there are 2 types of COVID-19 vaccines for use in the United States:

Inside mRNA COVID-19 vaccine
Inside the Novavax Vaccine
  • Protein subunit vaccines (Novavax)

Are there side effects to the COVID-19 vaccine?

  • There may be some mild side effects that go away in a day or two. Side effects are a sign that the vaccine is working. Side effects could include:
    • Pain, redness, or swelling in the arm where you received the vaccine. You can apply a cool, wet washcloth to reduce pain.
    • Mild flu-like symptoms, like tiredness, nausea, muscle aches, chills, headache, or fever. Drink plenty of fluids and rest to feel more comfortable.
  • Severe allergic reactions to vaccines are rare but can happen. 

Are COVID-19 vaccines safe?

Research and development on vaccines like the COVID-19 vaccines have been underway for decades.

All steps were taken to ensure COVID-19 vaccine safety and effectiveness, including:

  • Clinical Trials – All vaccines in the United States must go through three phases of clinical trials to ensure they are safe and effective. With the COVID-19 vaccine, the phases overlapped to speed up the process, but all were completed.
  • Authorization or Approval – Before vaccines are available to people, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reviews data from clinical trials. FDA has determined COVID-19 vaccines meet FDA’s standards and has granted those vaccines Emergency Use Authorizations (EUAs) or full FDA approval.
  • Tracking Safety Using Vaccine Monitoring Systems – Like every vaccine approved for use in the United States, COVID-19 vaccines continue to be monitored for safety and effectiveness. Hundreds of millions of people in the United States have safely received COVID-19 vaccines. CDC and FDA provide updated information on the safety of U.S. authorized or approved COVID-19 vaccines using data from the Vaccine Safety Datalink (VSD), Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS), and other safety monitoring systems.

Learn more about developing COVID-19 vaccines.

Resources

County of San Diego

California Department of Public Health (CDPH)

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

Food and Drug Administration (FDA)