COVID-19 FAQs

FAQ topics covered here include:

  • About COVID-19
  • COVID-19 Delta variant
  • COVID-19 vaccines
  • COVID-19 vaccine PODs

About COVID-19

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a respiratory illness that can spread from person to person. The virus that causes COVID-19 is a novel coronavirus that was first identified during an investigation into an outbreak in Wuhan, China.

The virus is thought to spread mainly between people who are in close contact with one another (within about six feet) through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person talks, coughs or sneezes.  An infected person can still spread the disease without having any symptoms.

Initial symptoms may appear 2-14 days (most often in 3 to 5 days) after exposure to the virus and include:

  • Cough
  • Headache
  • Runny nose
  • Sore throat
  • Fever or chills
  • Muscle or body aches

If you have these symptoms, you should get tested, and then be evaluated for treatment if you test positive. There are antibody treatments for high-risk patients with mild illness that greatly lower the risk of hospitalization. If you test positive, you may be a candidate for these treatments.

Overall, tests are very accurate. With PCR-based tests, if you test negative, it only means you likely didn’t have COVID-19 when your sample was collected. With antigen-based tests, if you are symptomatic then the tests are accurate, but these tests are not accurate for people who don’t have symptoms of COVID-19.

With all tests for COVID-19, it’s still possible to be infected and test positive later. If you develop symptoms later, you should get tested again


COVID-19 Delta variant

The SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19 has changed over the past year and a half, and a series of variants has swept through the U.S. The latest to become dominant in our region is the Delta variant, which is highly contagious and may cause more severe disease. In addition, people who are vaccinated can still get infected (breakthrough infections) and can also spread the virus to others.

As an increasing number of people become infected with the Delta variant, emergency departments across the nation will be pushed to capacity. Patients with non-COVID-19 related medical problems such as chronic disease, cancer, injuries and other conditions may not receive timely services and treatment because emergency physicians and nurses are overwhelmed with treating COVID-19 patients.

The Delta variant poses the biggest threat yet to our children, especially in indoor environments where masking and social distancing practices are not followed.

COVID-19 cases among children have steadily increased in our region and across the country. Tennessee children’s hospitals, including Niswonger Children’s Hospital, are reporting they are nearly full with their usual patients, children with respiratory diseases typically not present at this time of year, and COVID-19 patients. It is now clear that even with mild infection, children can have long-haul symptoms similar to adults, such as brain fog, fatigue and heart palpitations, even months after their initial diagnosis.

We applaud recent school masking requirements at the local and state levels. The number one way to protect children under the age of 5, who are not yet eligible for the vaccine, is for all adults around them to get vaccinated themselves. Masking and social distancing are also necessary to create a safe environment. For children ages 5 and older, the vaccine is the best way to prevent dangerous COVID-19 cases.


COVID-19 vaccines

The FDA has granted emergency use authorization (EUA) for three COVID-19 vaccines developed by Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson.

An approved vaccine takes time to produce and distribute. Regulated by the FDA, vaccines are subject to a rigorous review, which usually starts in the laboratory and moves to testing through clinical trials. The FDA requires success through three trial phases before approval for widespread use.

  • Phase I tests safety, dosage and immunogenicity in a small number of healthy volunteers.
  • Phase II is randomized, placebo controlled, and involves several hundred volunteers including people at risk of acquiring the disease. The goals are to better understand the vaccine’s safety, immunogenicity, proposed doses, schedule of immunizations, and method of delivery.
  • Phase III is a much larger trial to assess safety and efficacy in tens of thousands of people from groups that are at risk of the infection. The FDA said it expects COVID-19 trials to enroll 30,000 to 60,000 people reflective of the groups of people who are at highest risk of morbidity and mortality from COVID-19. It is expected to show if the vaccine can protect at least 50% of people who receive it from infection and to identify any relatively rare side effects that may have not been identified earlier.

On Oct. 29, 2021, the FDA expanded its emergency use authorization (EUA) for the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine to include adolescents 5-11 years old. Previously, the Pfizer vaccine was authorized for use in children 12 years and older. For now, this is the only vaccine authorized in the U.S. for anyone under the age of 18.

If you have already had COVID-19, you can still benefit from vaccination.

People who have already had a COVID 19 infection and who are also vaccinated are 2.3 times less likely to develop a breakthrough infection. Vaccination also dramatically increases antibody levels and greatly boosts the immune system, according to recent CDC and laboratory studies.

No. COVID-19 vaccines may trigger an immune response in some people that could mirror some symptoms of COVID-19, but none of the vaccines currently in use contain the virus that causes COVID-19.

No. None of the authorized and recommended COVID-19 vaccines cause you to test positive on viral tests, which are used to see if you have current infection.

If your body develops an immune response to vaccination, which is the goal, you may test positive on some antibody tests. Antibody tests indicate you had a previous infection and that you may have some level of protection against the virus.

For vaccines requiring two doses, early data indicates mild immunity after one dose, but further immunity requires two doses. If you receive a Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, you will need at least two shots to get the required protection.

Recent data shows that a third booster shot can increase immunity further, especially against the Delta variant and especially in high-risk individuals.

As of right now, you are considered fully vaccinated if you have received one dose of the Johnson and Johnson vaccine or two doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccine.

The CDC has recommended that individuals 18 and older who are fully vaccinated with the Johnson & Johnson vaccine receive a booster shot at least 2 months after their first shot. For individuals fully vaccinated with the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccine, the CDC recommends a booster shot for individuals 65 or older and for individuals 18 and older who have underlying medical conditions, live in long-term care settings, or live or work in high-risk settings. In all of these cases, the booster shot can be any of the boosters authorized by the FDA.

Updated CDC guidance recommends vaccinated people wear masks indoors again. This doesn’t mean the vaccines don’t work. It recognizes the potential for vaccinated and unvaccinated people who feel well to spread COVID-19 to other people.

Vaccines don’t prevent the virus from entering your body, even if you’re vaccinated. Masking and social distancing will do that. A vaccinated person is still able to get infected but is likely to have milder symptoms and much less likely to be hospitalized or to die from the infection.

A breakthrough infection is one that occurs after full vaccination. No vaccine is 100% effective at preventing disease. But vaccines authorized in the U.S. to help suppress COVID-19 are close — especially when it comes to preventing serious infection and severe illness, which is what they were designed to do.

In fact, less than 1% of fully vaccinated individuals have been hospitalized with, or have died from, COVID-19, according to the latest data tracked by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). There have been more breakthrough cases with the Delta variant, but the protection remains excellent against illness severe enough to need hospitalization or to cause death.

There is currently no evidence that any COVID-19 vaccines cause fertility issues for men or women. Concern about this issue surfaced when a false report circulated on social media.

This report said that the spike protein used in mRNA vaccines was similar to another spike protein that is needed for the growth of the placenta during pregnancy. The false report incorrectly stated that getting the COVID-19 vaccine would cause a woman’s body to fight this spike protein because it resembles the COVID spike protein, affecting her ability to get pregnant.

Clinical trials have proven this to be untrue—the two proteins are very different. The vaccine will not affect anyone’s ability to get pregnant, including women pursuing in-vitro methods of pregnancy. If exposure to the spike protein caused infertility, then getting infected with COVID-19 should also cause infertility, which has not been seen.

If you get pregnant in between doses, the American College of Gynecologists recommends you still receive the second dose.

Yes. The FDA has granted emergency authorization to the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for children ages 5 and up. Recent months have shown that everyone is susceptible to contracting the Delta variant of COVID-19 regardless of age, and the vaccine is currently considered the best defense against dangerous COVID-19 cases for all ages eligible to receive it.

Monoclonal antibody treatment is a procedure developed to combat COVID-19 in certain cases, and it must be administered early on in the illness. This treatment has been shown to drastically reduce life-threatening cases of COVID-19 in high-risk individuals.

If you test positive for COVID-19, speak to your physician early on about whether or not you are eligible for monoclonal antibody treatment. Monoclonal antibody treatment is not a replacement for the COVID-19 vaccine and cannot be used to prevent cases before they start.


COVID-19 vaccine PODs

Yes. Team members may also get vaccinated through the health department or through another vaccine provider.

Exemption requests can be made by clicking the link to the web form on the Human Resources department page on the Ballad Health Intranet and following the directions on the form. Those requesting a medical exemption should provide the required physician documentation by scanned email to teammemberhealth@balladhealth.org.

Ballad Health will notify team members through email.


Return to the COVID-19 vaccine resource page.