Hundreds of New Jersey healthcare workers who were first to receive initial COVID-19 vaccine doses last month started receiving their second and final doses, reports CBS New York.
Staff at University Hospital in Newark started receiving their second doses Jan. 4, immunizing them against COVID-19 within a few weeks.
The 95 percent vaccine effectiveness kicks in at least three weeks after the follow-up dose, Shereef Elnahal, MD, president and CEO of the hospital, told reporters during a press conference.
"I now have body armor," said Maritza Beniquez, RN, an emergency room nurse who was the first person in the state to be vaccinated last month. "You wouldn't send a police officer into the field without a vest and so, this is now my body armor."
University Hospital is vaccinating about 400 employees per day and plans to open up vaccinations to local area healthcare personnel once the majority of its staff receives theirs.
More articles on public health:
Shortened quarantine may pose transmission risk, CDC finds
COVID-19 has killed 350,000 Americans; South African variant alarms officials — 5 updates
19 states where COVID-19 is spreading fastest, slowest: Jan. 4