Monroe County has been incredibly effective in vaccinating its population with 41.3% of residents having received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine according to the Monroe County COVID-19 dashboard as of Apr. 12. This is up about 5% over the percentage of total United States residents who have received the vaccine. 

Vaccinations have recently become available for residents of ages 16 and older. This means that McQuaid Jesuit High School students now may be eligible to receive a vaccination. 

However, many young residents report feeling incredibly fatigued or sick following a vaccination. This may be due to the fact that only the Pfizer vaccine is available currently for young people, according to the Monroe County Website. The Pfizer vaccine is a two dose treatment with many recipients experiencing fatigue or soreness following the injection of their second dose.

“After my first shot, I recall feeling tightness and soreness only around the injection sight. However after the second shot, my whole left arm and the lymph node in my armpit was very sore,” says McQuaid Jesuit junior Drew Smith, who recently received his second dose of the Pfized vaccine.

Smith is one of many young high school students in the area who have received vaccinations. As vaccination numbers rise, many in the health industry fear recklessness towards COVID-19 safety protocols may soon commence – a reaction by young people as the world returns to normal.

On Apr. 13, it was announced that the ‘Johnson and Johnson’ vaccine may be linked to a rare type of blood clotting taking place in vaccinated women, putting its distribution on pause.

On top of this turmoil Dr. Anthony Fauci recently warned United States citizens that the country is currently at risk of another COVID-19 surge, according to yahoo!News. The leading doctor cited the U.K. Strain as the main culprit for the increased risk levels. Only time can tell whether currently distributed vaccinations will be able to protect against developing strains.