DETROIT – There are a lot of questions surrounding the COVID-19 vaccine including whether to use pain relievers to treat symptoms.
Currently, there is no proven reason not to use either Tylenol or Motrin to treat the side effects of the vaccine.
Local 4′s Dr. Frank McGeorge took Motrin about 14 hours after his second shot when he developed a fever and body aches.
The only issue is more of a theoretic concern particularly over whether Motrin might blunt the immune response to the vaccine, and along those lines McGeorge would not recommend taking it before receiving the shot in an attempt to prevent side effects.
Related: Answering your COVID questions: How long can you wait for your second vaccine dose?
There’s no evidence either way, but it’s unlikely that premedication would help.
Cost of Vaccine
Another question commonly asked is about the cost of a COVID-19 vaccine and whether an insurance card has to be presented to receive the vaccine.
The vaccine is free to everyone, but providers are allowed to bill a fee to your insurance for administering the shot.
However, they cannot charge you anything. Even if you have a co-pay or deductible there should be no out of pocket cost to you.
Another question asked came from a viewer who stated her mother experienced severe pain near the injection site after her first shot. She wanted to know whether anything could be done to prevent or reduce this for her second one.
The answer is no. In fact, people are actually more likely to experience discomfort or side effects after the second shot.
While you can’t prevent such side effects, you can treat them when they occur.
Another viewer wanted to know what effect the COVID-19 vaccine will have on future instances of exposure to other coronaviruses.
The currently available mRNA vaccines are specific to the spike protein of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and that is the only coronavirus you would be protected from.
The number of confirmed cases of the coronavirus (COVID-19) in Michigan has risen to 540,115 as of Tuesday, including 13,865 deaths, state officials report.
Tuesday’s update includes 1,738 new cases and 41 additional deaths.