# Covid booster shots, news and opinion **URL:** \ **Category:** The Quarantine Zone\ **Tags:** covid-quarantine\ **Created:** [September 12, 2021, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/covid-booster-shots-news-and-opinion/950565 "2021-09-12T19:34:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 12
**Author:** ![eschrodinger](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschrodinger/32/122_2.png) [@eschrodinger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschrodinger)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2021, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/covid-booster-shots-news-and-opinion/950565/221 "2021-11-19T20:52:23Z")
I’ve been wondering about that. I had Pfizer, and I want to boost with Moderna when the time comes. But I notice all the pharmacies seem to be asking what you got the first time. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2021, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/covid-booster-shots-news-and-opinion/950565/222 "2021-11-19T22:10:50Z")
> [@eschrodinger](#): > > But I notice all the pharmacies seem to be asking what you got the first time. Whatever you do, _don’t lie!_ ---
**Author:** ![eschrodinger](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschrodinger/32/122_2.png) [@eschrodinger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschrodinger)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2021, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/covid-booster-shots-news-and-opinion/950565/223 "2021-11-19T22:16:10Z")
I don’t intend to. I also plan to bring my vaccination card so the booster can be added, which means they would see what I got the first time anyway. ---
**Author:** ![lobotomyboy63](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobotomyboy63/32/2900_2.png) [@lobotomyboy63](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lobotomyboy63)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2021, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/covid-booster-shots-news-and-opinion/950565/224 "2021-11-20T13:21:51Z")
I had Pfizer for third time this week. A little soreness in arm, some fatigue, but otherwise unremarkable. I got flu shot too. I had to show them my card. Chatting with the nurse who jabbed me, I gathered that she thinks it will need to mutate about five more times before we can stop worrying about it. She also thinks we’ll be doing boosters every six months for the foreseeable future. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2021, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/covid-booster-shots-news-and-opinion/950565/225 "2021-11-20T13:29:25Z")
I think we’ll be doing a fall vaccine with a combined flu and covid vaccine. A friend who studies these things says there’s some evidence that antibodies decay more slowly after the third shot. There’s also a chance that three shots will do it, like with polio. Until we get a really different mutation, of course. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2021, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/covid-booster-shots-news-and-opinion/950565/226 "2021-11-20T14:05:02Z")
> [@eschrodinger](#): > > I’ve been wondering about that. I had Pfizer, and I want to boost with Moderna when the time comes. But I notice all the pharmacies seem to be asking what you got the first time. This seems to vary by state and provider. My daughter had Pfizer, and got a Moderna booster through CVS. They asked what she had initially, and told her which shops had which vaccine, and let her book at whichever shop she wanted. An on-line friend couldn’t get CVS to do this, but a local hospital clinic would. I’ve heard several accounts from people in the US who both could easily schedule whatever they wanted, and who couldn’t. ---
**Author:** ![JaneDoe42](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/janedoe42/32/14104_2.png) [@JaneDoe42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JaneDoe42)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2021, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/covid-booster-shots-news-and-opinion/950565/227 "2021-11-20T19:41:48Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > I’ve heard several accounts from people in the US who both could easily schedule whatever they wanted, and who couldn’t. Another account from the US (central Arizona to be specific). I was offered the choice between Moderna and J&J when I walked in for my booster because that was what they had. I could have gone elsewhere if I wanted Pfizer. ---
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2021, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/covid-booster-shots-news-and-opinion/950565/228 "2021-11-20T19:47:47Z")
When they announced boosters for everyone 18 and older yesterday 11/19/2021, my wife and I signed up in the evening and just got ours at 11am (we had not qualified before). So almost exactly 6 months and 2 weeks. And they had zero problems with mix and match, just which line you were in for the shots. So we were primary (2 doses) Pfizer, and boosted with Moderna. They did advise to expect a reaction similar to whatever your reaction to your second initial shot was, possibly a touch worse with the hybrid. Which is good, because I wanted the maximum potential prior to Thanksgiving with my in-laws. Because many of them are Trumpers, and while not rabidly anti-vax, they are . . . not cautious with their exposures shall we say, certainly compared to my wife and myself. And yes, I know, a week isn’t enough to fully build back up, but I can still feel better about it. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2021, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/covid-booster-shots-news-and-opinion/950565/229 "2021-11-20T19:50:00Z")
> [@elfkin477](#): > > None of the pharmacies around here will let you schedule to get a booster that’s a different brand than your first 2 shots (so if you’ve you’ve had Pfizer it’ll only offer you slots with Pfizer availability) despite the state Covid page saying it’s fine to mix and match if you want to. I wasn’t able to sign up online for a different [Moderna] booster (first two jabs were Pfizer), so I checked the box that said I had previously received Moderna, just to get the appointment. It was just that the software couldn’t accommodate it yet. At the appointment, I explained to the pharmacist, and he was perfectly happy to give me a Moderna. I knew there was a chance I’d be turned away, but it seemed remote. ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2021, 11:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/covid-booster-shots-news-and-opinion/950565/230 "2021-11-21T11:29:22Z")
Well we had our boosters yesterday. First two were AZ, this one was Moderna. All very business-like and straightforward so very happy to be “done”. Unfortunately I didn’t think through all the implications of it. I busted a rib last Wednesday playing footy. Anyone who has done that will know that there is bugger all to be done about it but it is painul and as a side sleeper my right-side is now out of bounds for me. So what did I do yesterday? I offered up my left arm without thinking and sure enough last night it was so sore that I couldn’t get comfy on _either_ side, What a tit. This morning I’m also shivery and knackered. Hey ho, first-world problems. It is a weekend and we booked it yesterday for that very reason. It was also my birthday yesterday so I have fancy biscuits, nice wine and whisky to dull the pain. I’ve done sod-all other than veg-out, watch rugby, short walk with my daughter and a scorching hot curry last night. I’m now going to have a hot bath while watching “Succession”, then the F1 and then more Rugby again. A classic birthday weekend as long you forget about the aches and pains. Still worth it though people. Get your boosters. ---
**Author:** ![lobotomyboy63](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobotomyboy63/32/2900_2.png) [@lobotomyboy63](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lobotomyboy63)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2021, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/covid-booster-shots-news-and-opinion/950565/231 "2021-11-21T15:18:37Z")
> [@eschrodinger](#): > > I’ve been wondering about that. I had Pfizer, and I want to boost with Moderna when the time comes. Mrs. L is the opposite—she had Moderna, had a bad reaction to it, and probably won’t get boosted if that’s the only option. ---
**Author:** ![jebert](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ec9cab/32.png) [@jebert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jebert)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2021, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/covid-booster-shots-news-and-opinion/950565/232 "2021-11-21T16:17:34Z")
Has there been any discussion of continuing booster shots? The guy I got mine from said it’s likely we’ll be need to be getting annual or semi-annual boosters, similar to annual flu shots, so this round is not likely to be the end of the story. ---
**Author:** ![eschrodinger](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschrodinger/32/122_2.png) [@eschrodinger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschrodinger)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2021, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/covid-booster-shots-news-and-opinion/950565/233 "2021-11-21T16:20:46Z")
I think any opinions about that now are guesses. The data is being collected now on how long the immunity from the third shot lasts. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2021, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/covid-booster-shots-news-and-opinion/950565/234 "2021-11-21T16:22:02Z")
I’ve discussed it elsewhere. We won’t really know for several more months. My best guess is that we will settle on a 3 dose initial series (as for polio) and then recommend annual boosters for the elderly and those with risk factors, but probably not for everyone. ---
**Author:** ![GreysonCarlisle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a87d85/32.png) [@GreysonCarlisle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreysonCarlisle)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2021, 7:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/covid-booster-shots-news-and-opinion/950565/235 "2021-11-23T07:15:06Z")
Got my booster a couple of days ago. Spent most of yesterday in a fog of Moderna flu. I felt really, really bad! That’s what I told my girlfriend, trying to wheedle some chicken soup out of her. But no, we’re out and neither of us felt like going to the store. So I went back to bed for 4 or 5 hours, then took a long, hot soak. Mostly better today, but wrung-out and just kinda blah. She apparently had no side-effects this time around. Thankfully. The first shot was her nemesis. No regrets. ---
**Author:** ![GreysonCarlisle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a87d85/32.png) [@GreysonCarlisle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreysonCarlisle)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2021, 7:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/covid-booster-shots-news-and-opinion/950565/236 "2021-11-23T07:17:28Z")
> [@lobotomyboy63](#): > > > [@eschrodinger](#): > > > > I’ve been wondering about that. I had Pfizer, and I want to boost with Moderna when the time comes. > > Mrs. L is the opposite—she had Moderna, had a bad reaction to it, and probably won’t get boosted if that’s the only option. I believe that they said that mixing is okay. When we went for our boosters, the doc had various bins filled with syringes. Moderna Booster, Pfizer Booster, Child, some others. ---
**Author:** ![eschrodinger](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschrodinger/32/122_2.png) [@eschrodinger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschrodinger)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2021, 7:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/covid-booster-shots-news-and-opinion/950565/237 "2021-11-23T07:42:30Z")
Yeah, the problem is that, apparently, some places that have an online appointment systems won’t let you schedule an appointment for a different vaccine. So there might be a bit more hassle one way or another to get the one you want scheduled if you want to mix and match. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2021, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/covid-booster-shots-news-and-opinion/950565/238 "2021-11-24T02:31:10Z")
> [@GreysonCarlisle](#): > > Got my booster a couple of days ago. Spent most of yesterday in a fog of Moderna flu. I felt really, really bad! I’m scheduled for mine tomorrow (Nov. 24). Yee-haw! Can’t wait to get it done. So I’ll likely spend Thanksgiving day loafing around, feeling vaguely shitty, reading the Dope all day. (My side effects from the first two shots were quite mild.) ---
**Author:** ![GreysonCarlisle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a87d85/32.png) [@GreysonCarlisle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreysonCarlisle)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2021, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/covid-booster-shots-news-and-opinion/950565/239 "2021-11-24T03:31:14Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > I’m scheduled for mine tomorrow (Nov. 24). Yee-haw! Can’t wait to get it done. I know! When the news broke, I was like Can we go? Huh? Can we? Can we? May your injection be painless and your side-effects mild! ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2021, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/covid-booster-shots-news-and-opinion/950565/240 "2021-11-24T13:49:16Z")
Got my booster (Moderna, after an original Pfizer course) yesterday; no noticeable effects except a slight tenderness around the injection site. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/covid-booster-shots-news-and-opinion/950565.md?page=11) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/covid-booster-shots-news-and-opinion/950565.md?page=13)