Vaccines and You: Everything You Need to Know Israel today

Who will be the first to be vaccinated?

• Who can not get vaccinated now?

• How and when to make an appointment and what are the side effects of the vaccine?

• The vaccination campaign is underway - questions and answers

Who can get vaccinated?

The first to be vaccinated will be the medical staffs in the hospitals, and then in the health funds, private clinics and dental clinics.

After that, the staffs in the geriatric and psychiatric hospitals and the nursing and medical students working in the hospitals, the MDA and the rescue organizations will be vaccinated. The next priority will be the nursing home staff and their patients. 

Photo: Moshe Ben Simhon

As of tomorrow, HMO insureds from the age of 60 will also be vaccinated. Along with them were placed citizens suffering from background diseases, patients with immunosuppression, organ transplants and hematologic patients.

High-exposure groups such as teachers, kindergarten teachers, social workers, prisoners and wardens in prisons, the IDF and security bodies will then be vaccinated. 

Who can not get vaccinated at this point?

Recovering from corona, children and adolescents up to age 16, pregnant and lactating women, people with a history of severe allergic reactions (anaphylaxis).

Also, women who intend to conceive should maintain a one-month gain from receiving the vaccine. 

How to make an appointment?

Insured persons in the target groups (aged 60 and over) have in recent days received text messages and e-mails from their health insurance fund.

Even those who have not yet received a summons can contact the funds 'call centers, or the funds' websites and applications.

Because the HMOs received a limited number of vaccinations this week, residents of localities in their immediate vicinity do not have a vaccination point yet to be notified of an appointment, but this is expected to be resolved in the coming days.

I got vaccinated - how long do I have protection?  

Most vaccines require two doses, some only one dose.

Although Pfizer's vaccine has shown a protective effect as early as ten days after the first dose, it is given in two injections three weeks apart and protection against corona is achieved starting one week after receiving the second dose.

Important to know: Anyone who has received a first dose of one type of vaccine should also have the second dose of the exact same type.

When can the whole population be vaccinated?

This is expected within a week and a half and at the same time as the rate of vaccines arrives.

By the end of the month, there are expected to be 3.8 million vaccine doses in Israel, in which case the Ministry of Health will approve the HMOs to vaccinate anyone they want.

What are the side effects of the vaccine?

The most common side effects in adults over 18 years of age are local, within seven days of receiving the vaccine and are more common after the second dose.

Side effects include pain and swelling at the injection site, fever, weakness and muscle and joint pain.

The symptoms appeared about two days after the vaccine and disappeared within a day or two.