COVID Tri-Valley Resources

September 7, 2021

We made a huge stride towards beating this pandemic. Vaccines are super effective protecting people from getting really sick and dying, and they are available in our communities. Delta variants changed the game. Still we are so much safer thanks to indoor masking and higher vaccination rates in the Bay Area. Let’s get everybody eligible vaccinated. The information compiled here are from following government sources. CDC COVID-19: cdc.gov/coronavirus/, California for All: covid19.ca.gov, Alameda County: covid-19.acgov.org, Contra Costa County: coronavirus.cchealth.org, and San Joaquin County: sjready.org/events/covid19/

Find a COVID-19 vaccine / Encuentra una vacuna contra el COVID-19

If you need help making appointments in Tri-Valley, call (510) 208-4VAX or contact Senior Support of the Tri-Valley at (925) 462-1755 for assistance in scheduling an appointment.

Living with COVID-19 Table of Contents

How can I get vaccinated?

  1. Through your Health Care Providers
    • Kaiser Call 866-454-8855
      KAISER PERMANENTE Dublin Medical Offices Diablo Service Area (3100 Dublin Blvd, Dublin, CA 94568), San Leandro Main (2500 Merced St Fl 1, San Leandro, CA 94577)
    • Stanford Health Care is accepting walk ins and appointments at MyHealth or call 650-498-9000.
      Stanford Health Care – ValleyCare Urgent Care Livermore at 1133 E. Stanley Blvd., Suite 151, Livermore 94550. Appointments by phone 925-373-4018
      Stanford Health Care – ValleyCare Urgent Care Dublin at 4000 Dublin Blvd., Suite 150, Dublin 94568. Appointments by phone 925-479-3773
    • Sutter Health Care is scheduling appointments at MyHealth or call (844) 987-6115
      Dublin Sutter Walk-In Care (3918 Fallon Road, Dublin, CA 94568), San Ramon Sutter Walk -In Care (460 Market Place, San Ramon, CA 94583)
  2. Oakland Coliseum Federal/State Mass Vaccination site: Closed on May 23, 2021.
  3. Counties
  4. Pharmacies
    Find one near you online, text your zip code to 438829 or call 1-800-232-0233 (Most pharmacies have availability, and accept walk ins!)

Eligibility: All the residents over 12 years old are eligible. Remember to:

  • Bring a form of documentation with your name on it. You do not need a government-issued ID to receive a vaccine. Undocumented individuals are eligible to receive a vaccine regardless of their immigration status. Examples of acceptable documentation include: student ID, library card, rental agreement, utility bill, a REAL ID, state driver’s license or identification card, passport, among others.
  • Give yourself enough time to fill out a few patient forms when you arrive.

Currently Pfizer is the only vaccine for 12-17 years old. Minors must be accompanied by a legal guardian to receive vaccine. CDPH Pfizer Vaccine Minor Consent Guidance (Downloadable Written Consent Form for Parents/Guardians who are consenting for a minor to receive the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine:  English | Spanish)

For more information on Vaccines please refer to the section “All about Vaccines” below. Currently all the vaccines are administered under the FDA Emergency Use Authorization except Pfizer vaccine, Comirnaty, which was fully approved for 16 years and older on Aug 23, 2021.

How can I prove that I am vaccinated?

Keep your vaccination record cards in a safe place to prevent loss or damage. You can make a copy or take a photo of the card to prove you got vaccinated.

The Digital COVID-19 Vaccine Record (DCVR) portal gives you a digital copy of your vaccine record. If you’ve lost your paper vaccine card, you may print out your digital record and use it at any place where you would show your paper vaccination card.

Read CDPH’s Vaccine Record Guidelines & Standards for complete details.

How can we protect us and our family?

The best protection is getting vaccinated. CDC has a guideline. If you are fully vaccinated, you can participate in many of the activities that you did before the pandemic. If you are not vaccinated or have unvaccinated, lower immunity or high risk person(s) in your household follow the guideline below.

  1. Get vaccinated if you are over 12 years old
  2. Wear good fitted mask covering nose and mouth indoors
  3. Keep a safe distance whenever you can
  4. Wash hands often with soap and water
  5. Keep contact time short
  6. Maintain good air circulation (fan, AC, air purifier, and opening windows)

What to Expect after Getting a COVID-19 Vaccine

  • Get started with v-safe, a free, smartphone-based tool that uses text messaging and web surveys to provide personalized health check-ins after you receive a COVID-19 vaccination.
  • Side effects can affect your ability to do daily activities, but they should go away in a few days. If not seek medical help.
  • It takes time for your body to build protection after any vaccination. COVID-19 vaccines that require 2 shots may not protect you until a week or two after your second shot.
  • If you have been fully vaccinated (2 weeks after the 2nd shot for 2-dose vaccine or the single dose vaccine) new CDC guideline states:
    • Outdoor activities pose minimal risk to fully vaccinated people.
    • Most indoor activities pose low risk to fully vaccinated people, especially in areas with low or moderate transmission.
    • Infections happen in only a small proportion of people who are fully vaccinated, even with the Delta variant.
    • Fully vaccinated people who become infected with the Delta variant can transmit it to others.

To reduce the risk of becoming infected with the Delta variant and potentially spreading it to others, CDC recommends that fully vaccinated people:

  • Wear a mask in public indoor settings if they are in an area of substantial or high transmission.
    • Fully vaccinated people might choose to mask regardless of the level of transmission, particularly if they or someone in their household is immunocompromised or at increased risk for severe disease, or if someone in their household is unvaccinated. People who are at increased risk for severe disease include older adults and those who have certain medical conditions, such as diabetes, overweight or obesity, and heart conditions.
  • Get tested if experiencing COVID-19 symptoms.
  • Isolate if they have tested positive for COVID-19 in the prior 10 days or are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms.
  • Get tested 3-5 days after exposure to someone with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 and wear a mask in public indoor settings for 14 days after exposure or until they receive a negative test result.
  • Continue to follow any applicable federal, state, local, tribal, or territorial laws, rules, and regulations.

Travel

Fully vaccinated travelers are less likely to get and spread SARS-CoV-2 and can now travel at low risk to themselves within the United States. International travelers need to pay close attention to the situation at their international destinations before traveling due to the spread of new variants and because the burden of COVID-19 varies globally.

Wearing a mask over your nose and mouth is required on planes, buses, trains, and other forms of public transportation traveling into, within, or out of the United States and while indoors at U.S. transportation hubs such as airports and stations. Travelers are not required to wear a mask in outdoor areas of a conveyance (like on open deck areas of a ferry or the uncovered top deck of a bus).

Domestic travel (within the United States or to a U.S. territory)

  • Fully vaccinated travelers do not need to get a SARS-CoV-2 viral test before or after domestic travel, unless testing is required by local, state, or territorial health authorities.
  • Fully vaccinated travelers do not need to self-quarantine following domestic travel.
  • For more information, see Domestic Travel During COVID-19.

International travel

  • Fully vaccinated travelers do not need to get tested before leaving the United States unless required by their destination.
  • Fully vaccinated air travelers coming to the United States from abroad, including U.S. citizens, are still required to have a negative SARS-CoV-2 viral test result or documentation of recovery from COVID-19 before they board a flight to the United States.
  • International travelers arriving in the United States are still recommended to get a SARS-CoV-2 viral test 3-5 days after travel regardless of vaccination status.
  • Fully vaccinated travelers do not need to self-quarantine in the United States following international travel.
  • For more information, see International Travel During COVID-19.

Testing for COVID-19

Viral tests are used to look for current infection

A viral test checks specimens from your nose or your mouth to find out if you are currently infected with the virus that causes COVID-19. Viral tests can be performed in a laboratory, at a testing site, or at home or anywhere else. Two types of viral tests are used: nucleic acid amplification tests (NAATs) and antigen tests.

Who should get tested

The following people should get tested for COVID-19:

  • People who have symptoms of COVID-19.
  • People who have had a known exposure to someone with suspected or confirmed COVID-19.
    • People who are fully vaccinated should get tested 3-5 days after exposure, and wear a mask in public indoor settings for 14 days or until they receive a negative test result.
    • People who are not fully vaccinated should quarantine and be tested immediately after being identified, and, if negative, tested again in 5–7 days after last exposure or immediately if symptoms develop during quarantine.

All about COVID-19 vaccines

For more information on Vaccines please refer to CDC “Key Things to Know About COVID-19 Vaccines“. Currently all the vaccines are administered under the FDA Emergency Authorization. Pfizer and Moderna both applied for full approval in May and June respectively.

Eligibility: All the residents over 12 years old are eligible. Currently Pfizer is the only vaccine for 12-17 years old. Minors must be accompanied by a legal guardian to receive vaccine. CDPH Pfizer Vaccine Minor Consent Guidance (Downloadable Written Consent Form for Parents/Guardians who are consenting for a minor to receive the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine:  English | Spanish)

Comirnaty (Pfizer-BioNTech)ModernaJohnson & Johnson’s Janssen
TypemRNAmRNAViral Vector
Doses2 shots, 21 days apart2 shots, 28 days apart1 shot
Efficacy during trial95%94.1%66.3% globally/72% US
Effectiveness against severe illness>90%>90%>85%
FDA ApprovalEmergency Use Authorization (12-15, booster for immunocompromised)
Full approval 16+		Emergency Use Authorization (booster for immunocompromised)Emergency Use Authorization
Age12-15 (EUA), 16+18+ (EUA)18+ (EUA)
Common side effectsIn the arm: Pain, Redness, Swelling
Rest of the body: Tiredness, Headache, Muscle pain, Chills, Fever, Nausea		Same as PfizerSame as Pfizer
WarningAdolescents and young adults (particularly in male): myocarditis and pericarditis (2 per 1 million)Same as PfizerWomen younger than 50 yrs old: rare risk of blood clots with low platelets (7 per 1 million)
CDCFactsheetFactsheetFactsheet
COVID Vaccine Comparison

CA Vaccination Progress

As of Sep 6, 2021

Fully VaccinatedAt least got 1 shot
California22.8M (67.3%)26.2M (77.5%)
Alameda County1.1M (75.6%)1.2M (89.0%)
Contra Costa County794K (78.8%)850K (84.3%)
San Joaquin County347K (53.5%)410K (63.1%)

How about Breakthrough infection?

As of Aug 2, out of 164 million people vaccinated in the US, 5285 people (0.0000003%, or 32 per million) got hospitalized, and 1119 people (0.00000007% or 7 per million) died related to COVID. Fully vaccinated people are well protected even to Delta variant preventing them to get really sick or die.

Emergency Usage Authorization

What is an Emergency Use Authorization?

Vaccination goals

  1. To avoid people die, get hospitalized or really sick.
    • All the FDA approved vaccines are equally effective to achieve this.
    • Health Care system needs to function for other illnesses
    • Prioritizing seniors especially in group quarters has been successful
    • Regardless the age certain illnesses and disabilities put people at higher risk
  2. To maintain society function
    • Health care workers and essential workers need to be protected
  3. To control the transmission
    • Workers who regularly contact the public needs to be protected
    • If the risk of the virus becomes same as regular flu, we can go back to schools and works, and see friends and family members without fear of harming them.

Many professionals and community leaders are working on Vaccine delivery. National Forum on Covid Vaccine was held in February. California Community Advisory Group and Alameda County Community Advisory Group meets regularly.

Federal vaccine distribution complements the state distribution

  1. Federally Supported Community Vaccination Centers includes mass vaccination centers.
  2. Federal Retail Pharmacy Program to increase accessibility in the hardest hit communities
  3. Federally Qualified Health Centers to target their patients in the hardest hit communities
  4. Mobile Vaccination to offer vaccination in the hardest hit communities

The State distribution supply both counties and health care providers.