Vaccines

Vaccines play an important role in keeping us healthy. They protect us from serious and sometimes deadly diseases and save millions of lives each year. They prepare the body’s immune system to recognize germs and fight off infection.

Vaccines prevent disease by working with your body’s natural defenses to:

• Help it recognize germs and remember how to fight them. If you are then exposed to those germs in the future, your immune system can destroy it before you become sick.
• Produce antibodies. Antibodies are proteins produced naturally by the immune system to fight infection.

Frequently Asked Questions about Vaccines

• How does a vaccine work?

  Vaccines play an important role in keeping us healthy. They protect us from serious and sometimes deadly dieases by preparing our body’s immune system to recognize certain gems and fight off infections.

  The COVID-19 vaccine protects us from the virus that causes COVID-19 without having to get the illness. If you are later come into contact with someone who has COVID-19, your immune system will be able to help you not get sick from it.

• How do vaccines protect communities?

  When a person gets the COVID-19 vaccine, it reduces their chance of getting the disease. This means that they are not likely to spread COVID-19 to others. As more people in a community get the vaccine, there are fewer people who are at risk for both getting and spreading the disease. Lowering the chances of COVID-19 to spread in the community protects those who cannot get the vaccine due to other serious health conditions. This is something called community immunity or “herd immunity.” Because not everyone can be vaccinated, they depend on others being vaccinated to ensure they are also safe.

• Why is vaccination important?

  Vaccination is a safe and effective way to prevent disease and save lives. When we get vaccinated, we aren not just protecting ourselves, but also those around us. For some people, like those who are very ill, it is recommended that they do not get certain vaccines. They depend on the rest of us to get vaccinated and help reduce the spread of disease.