- Hi, I'm Dr. Julie Casani
and I'm the director for Student Health Services
at NC State.
We are here at Talley
at the NC State COVID vaccine location,
and this is where we will be administering vaccines
to the campus community.
The three different vaccines that we will be administering
are the Moderna vaccine, the Pfizer vaccine,
and the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
And all of them have been proven
to be very, very safe and very effective.
They've all gone through safety trials
and they've all been proven to have,
they may have some side effects, but they are all very safe,
and they all have good coverage against the virus itself.
There's a lot of questions
about the Emergency Use Authorization
and what does that mean because for some people,
it seems that that kind of process
for approval of the vaccine
means that they're still experimental
and under investigation, and that's actually not true.
The EUA, or the Emergency Use Authorization process,
was designed to look at the data that we ordinarily look at
for safety regarding any vaccine or any medication,
except that under the usual circumstances
the FDA takes a very long time to look at that data,
maybe a year, maybe two.
And what we know is that during a public health emergency
like a pandemic, we need to get that process shortened.
So these vaccines have gone
through the same safety protocols, the same clinical trials
that any other vaccine has gone through.
It's just that the review of that safety data
has been compressed.
So people worked really, really hard to look at it
as closely as they ordinarily would
to ensure that they're safe.
And now I understand that you've been asking questions
on social media
so let's see if we can try to answer some of them.
(air whooshing)
So at NC state,
our plan is to vaccinate everybody eventually,
anybody who wants it on campus, but right now,
because we're only getting vaccine in small amounts
and that allocation is done through the state,
we have to figure out who should get it first.
And so the people that we have decided,
in line with the state rules about giving vaccine,
are the people who are most at risk for COVID
and for their complications.
So the first group of people
that we will be administering vaccines to
are people over 65, and this includes faculty, staff,
and students, people over 65,
people with medical risks,
and then the group one employees here at NC State.
Eventually we will be vaccinating everybody,
so incoming students, if they haven't gotten vaccinated,
we will be setting up a program for them to get vaccinated,
either before they start classes
or when they start classes here,
graduating seniors, if they get their first shot
before they graduate,
then we will continue with their second shot.
They will be able to get their second shot here on campus.
(air whooshing)
So we will have all three manufacturers.
We will have the Moderna, the Pfizer
and the Johnson & Johnson.
And unfortunately we don't ever really know
exactly how much we're gonna get
of any of those manufacturers
until the Thursday or Friday before the next week.
So we don't really plan, like, to say,
"Well, next week we're gonna give Johnson & Johnson"
until we know that Friday
what our allocations are from the state.
(air whooshing)
So that brings up the question of can you choose?
And unfortunately right now, the answer to that is no,
but remember, all three vaccines are safe
and all three vaccines work.
So it really doesn't matter which one you get.
(air whooshing)
The allocations from the state are based
on us giving you both shots
and that's true for anybody who vaccinates.
So if you've gone someplace else
and you've gotten your first shot there,
they're gonna get their allocations
based on you getting your second shot there.
So you have to go back there for both of your shots.
So if you came here to get your second shot,
you're actually taking away somebody else's first shot.
So we can't allow that to happen.
(air whooshing)
So once we know how many doses we're gonna get
in our state allocation, we will be publishing
and alerting people to go back into the place
where they pre-registered and make their appointment.
So just keep watching, keep listening,
and you'll be able to go back into that application
and make your appointments.
(air whooshing)
So the vaccine is free.
We get it from the state
who gets it from the federal government
and right now all of that is paid for.
Sometimes providers can charge an administration fee.
So if you went to your private practitioner,
they may charge your insurance about $25.
And that covers the cost of having the nurse give it to you.
(air whooshing)
You may have heard a lot in the media
about the priority groups that the state is using
in order to get this vaccine out
to those people most at risk.
So they've moved through the top groups,
the health care providers, the critical infrastructure,
and then people over 65, people with medical risks,
and they're already moved down into group four
which includes our students who live in congregate settings.
The goal for everybody,
both in North Carolina and nationally,
is to get vaccine out to all adults by May 1st.
That's our goal too.
So we are following those rules
but I think we're gonna be able to move very quickly
because a lot of people on campus
have already gotten vaccinated,
especially those in those high risk groups.
My goal is to get everybody on campus
who wants a vaccine, a vaccine.
Our goal is to continue vaccinating.
Obviously we have a huge push to get people vaccinated
before they leave campus at the end of the semester,
but I expect to be vaccinating people in the summer
and then all into the fall.
As long as there are people who aren't vaccinated,
we'll be available to vaccinate.
(air whooshing)
Right now, there are no thoughts
about making the vaccine required,
but I can tell you it's highly recommended.
If you're out there working with other people,
dealing with other people, you live with other people,
this is a safe vaccine, it's an effective vaccine,
it's a free vaccine, why not?
That question is a big question, what does life look like?
You still have to get tested in the surveillance program,
and the reason for that is
even though the vaccine is very effective,
there are variants and you can still get infected.
So we still test people.
We still watch people who may have symptoms.
You still have to wash your hands.
You still have to wear your mask.
You still have to wait the distance.
I talk about it for me, I've been fully vaccinated
as a healthcare provider, I still wear my mask,
I still watch, but I don't have to,
I have to be careful, but I don't have to be fearful.
I can go out. I can relax a little bit.
I don't relax my behavior, but I don't feel as nervous
when I'm out in crowds or with other people.
So as all of you know, our community transmission rate
is very low on campus, it's about 1%.
I'd like to keep it that way till the end of the semester
so let's keep working hard,
but that's because of all of your efforts,
We're here to vaccinate. The vaccine is free.
The effort to get your vaccine is pretty minimal
compared to what a lot of people are doing elsewhere,
so why not take advantage of it?
I think that if we all work together,
we all add this extra layer of protection,
we can all continue to protect the Pack
and get through the semester, get through the summer,
and come back in the fall
and really feel like we're back on campus.