South Florida Sun-Sentinel (Sunday)
Have Johnson & Johnson vaccinations resumed?
“When will Publix resume administering the Johnson & Johnson vaccine?”
Publix announced on April 26 that the company was restarting J&J shots after federal health officials recommended a pause following reports of rare blood clots among some women. When you go to publix.com/covidvaccine, you choose your state and then your vaccine (Moderna or J&J). Then you can see which counties have appointments for your desired brand.
There are other sites offering the J&J if Publix is not convenient. Federally supported vaccination centers, such as the site at Miami Dade College North, began offering the J&J again on April 25.
“My granddaughter got her first vaccine at college. She has to move out of her dorm on May 2. Second shot is due May 5. She was planning to drive back two hours for the second shot. Can she get the second shot closer to home?” —
This shouldn’t be a problem. Federal health officials said on April 27 they were telling pharmacies and grocery-store chains to offer second doses to just about anyone who needs one.
The announcement was aimed at students like your granddaughter.
According to Andy Slavitt, the White House’s COVID-19 advisor, federal officials saw that many college students who have gotten their first dose on campus are about to head home for the summer, and they want to make sure the kids’ second doses are easily available.
CVS has been offering second doses to people who got their first elsewhere for a while. Walgreens and Publix are also a good bet, as are any of the federally operated sites in South Florida, such as Broward College North or the Hard Rock Stadium. Just make sure the dose they are offering is the same brand as the first one she got.
“I was happy to get a Pfizer vaccine, because my daughter had two days of 104 degree fever after Moderna. I had just a sore arm next day after both shots of Pfizer. But five days after the second one, I began to have excruciating pains in both shoulders and a pain in one of my knees. I had some pains in that one before and some in a shoulder about a year ago, but nothing to compare with what was happening. I could not sleep and felt like I was being crucified with big nails in my shoulders. It has not gone away, so I visited a doctor who gave me shots of steroids after checking an X-ray.
I do have bad arthritis. He mentioned that he had other patients with arthritis who complained about worsening pain after vaccine. What is Pfizer saying about this? Why they have not warned about it?”
There have been reports of people with auto-immune diseases having strong post-vaccine reactions. But the Arthritis Foundation wants patients to get their shots, according to Arthritis.org.
“The risk of severe illness and hospitalization due to a COVID-19 infection is much higher than the risk of a severe adverse reaction to any of the vaccines,” the organization reports.
Your adverse reaction, though clearly agonizing, is not uncommon. Muscle and joint pain are two of the most reported side effects of the Pfizer vaccine, said Dr. Andrea Klemes, chief medical officer for MDVIP, a national physicians’ network with headquarters in Boca Raton.
“If you are experiencing prolonged adverse effects, you should consult your doctor for advice,” she said. “You can also report any adverse event relating to the Pfizer vaccine by calling 1-800-438-1985 or contacting the US Food & Drug Administration (FDA) directly at 1-800FDA-1088.”
“I have to have a procedure on May 17 that requires anesthesia as an outpatient. I was contemplating getting the Pfizer vaccine to time it to be able to get the second shot after the procedure. I’ve been reading that if you’re going to be under anesthesia, you should wait a while until after the anesthesia wears off completely before getting any part of the vaccine. Can you attest to what I have told you?” —
You want to wait until you’re fully immunized before proceeding with your outpatient surgery. That’s the advice from Dr. Andrea Klemes, chief medical officer at MDVIP, a national physicians’ network with headquarters in Boca Raton.
She said the American Society of Anesthesiologists has found there is no evidence the vaccine interferes with anesthesia, but recommends surgery be scheduled at least two weeks after your final dose to ensure you’re fully protected.
“Because surgery is stressful on the body and temporarily puts extra strain on your immune system, you might want to wait until you are fully immunized before proceeding,” she said. “If you are having non-emergency surgery or an elective surgery that can wait, ask your doctor about whether or not you should complete your vaccination first.”
“I decided to take a picture of my card and noticed that my last name was spelled incorrectly. In addition, I seem to be missing numbers written on the bottom of the card. How do I correct the mistakes?” —
Go back to the site where you got your shots or give them a call. Most have created systems for replacing cards that are lost or damaged or have mistakes.
Here are a few South Florida sites and their recommendations for how to get a replacement.
Florida Department of Health, Palm Beach:
If you got your shots through Palm Beach County’s health department, email CHD50ContactUs@flhealth.gov with the subject line “Vaccination Card” and provide your name, birthdate and location and dates of your shots.
Florida Department of Health, Broward: Call the health department’s records management office at 954-847-8137.
Publix: Call (800)
242-1227 for customer service.
Broward Health: “All COVID vaccination data is being sent to Florida SHOTS,” Broward Health spokeswoman Jennifer Smith said. “The public should call their primary care physician, who can then access the database and have a new card reissued.”
“My husband and I are helping a homeless couple get back on their feet. They each have new ID cards, as well as Medicaid cards. However, due to being homeless their address is listed as GENERAL DELIVERY on their IDs. Publix has said they cannot vaccinate them without a residential and/or mailing address on their IDs. This seems like such blatant discrimination to me in that if you are poor and homeless you somehow do not qualify for a life-saving drug. It was difficult enough to get IDs for them, to not be able to get them a COVID vaccination seems nothing short of cruel.” —
How wonderful that you are helping this homeless couple.
Unfortunately, vaccine recipients in Florida do need to show a Florida address on their ID. Your best bet is going to be one of the pop-up sites that periodically offer vaccines to the homeless.
Several organizations collaborated in MiamiDade last week to offer the vaccine to hundreds of homeless men and women. In Palm Beach County, a mobile clinic, sponsored by the Health Care District of Palm Beach County, will visit St. Ann Place, an outreach center in West Palm Beach, early next month to provide primary care and COVID-19 vaccinations.
Meanwhile, Broward is developing a new program to create “Community IDs” for the homeless and others who don’t have traditional addresses. The IDs, which will cost $20, will be accepted as proof of residency at Broward vaccination sites.