Revised: 12/2020
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You are being offered the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine to prevent Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by SARS-CoV-2. This Fact Sheet contains information to help you understand the risks and benefits of the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine, which you may receive because there is currently a pandemic of COVID-19.
The Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine is a vaccine and may prevent you from getting COVID-19. There is no U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved vaccine to prevent COVID-19.
Read this Fact Sheet for information about the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine. Talk to the vaccination provider if you have questions. It is your choice to receive the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine.
The Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine is administered as a 2-dose series, 1 month apart, into the muscle.
The Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine may not protect everyone.
This Fact Sheet may have been updated. For the most recent Fact Sheet, please visit www.modernatx.com/covid19vaccine-eua.
COVID-19 is caused by a coronavirus called SARS-CoV-2. This type of coronavirus has not been seen before. You can get COVID-19 through contact with another person who has the virus. It is predominantly a respiratory illness that can affect other organs. People with COVID-19 have had a wide range of symptoms reported, ranging from mild symptoms to severe illness. Symptoms may appear 2 to 14 days after exposure to the virus. Symptoms may include: fever or chills; cough; shortness of breath; fatigue; muscle or body aches; headache; new loss of taste or smell; sore throat; congestion or runny nose; nausea or vomiting; diarrhea.
The Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine is an unapproved vaccine that may prevent COVID-19. There is no FDA-approved vaccine to prevent COVID-19.
The FDA has authorized the emergency use of the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine to prevent COVID-19 in individuals 18 years of age and older under an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA).
For more information on EUA, see the “What is an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA)?” section at the end of this Fact Sheet.
Tell your vaccination provider about all of your medical conditions, including if you:
FDA has authorized the emergency use of the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine in individuals 18 years of age and older.
You should not get the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine if you:
The Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine contains the following ingredients: messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA), lipids (SM-102, polyethylene glycol [PEG] 2000 dimyristoyl glycerol [DMG], cholesterol, and 1,2-distearoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine [DSPC]), tromethamine, tromethamine hydrochloride, acetic acid, sodium acetate, and sucrose.
The Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine will be given to you as an injection into the muscle.
The Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine vaccination series is 2 doses given 1 month apart.
If you receive one dose of the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine, you should receive a second dose of the same vaccine 1 month later to complete the vaccination series.
The Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine is an unapproved vaccine. In clinical trials, approximately 15,400 individuals 18 years of age and older have received at least 1 dose of the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine.
In an ongoing clinical trial, the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine has been shown to prevent COVID-19 following 2 doses given 1 month apart. The duration of protection against COVID-19 is currently unknown.
Side effects that have been reported with the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine include:
There is a remote chance that the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine could cause a severe allergic reaction. A severe allergic reaction would usually occur within a few minutes to one hour after getting a dose of the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine. For this reason, your vaccination provider may ask you to stay at the place where you received your vaccine for monitoring after vaccination. Signs of a severe allergic reaction can include:
These may not be all the possible side effects of the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine. Serious and unexpected side effects may occur. The Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine is still being studied in clinical trials.
If you experience a severe allergic reaction, call 9-1-1, or go to the nearest hospital.
Call the vaccination provider or your healthcare provider if you have any side effects that bother you or do not go away.
Report vaccine side effects to FDA/CDC Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS). The VAERS toll-free number is 1-800-822-7967 or report online to https://vaers.hhs.gov/reportevent.html. Please include “Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine EUA” in the first line of box #18 of the report form.
In addition, you can report side effects to ModernaTX, Inc. at 1-866-MODERNA (1-866-663-3762).
You may also be given an option to enroll in v-safe. V-safe is a new voluntary smartphone-based tool that uses text messaging and web surveys to check in with people who have been vaccinated to identify potential side effects after COVID-19 vaccination. V-safe asks questions that help CDC monitor the safety of COVID-19 vaccines. V-safe also provides second-dose reminders if needed and live telephone follow-up by CDC if participants report a significant health impact following COVID-19 vaccination. For more information on how to sign up, visit: www.cdc.gov/vsafe.
It is your choice to receive or not receive the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine. Should you decide not to receive it, it will not change your standard medical care.
Currently, there is no FDA-approved alternative vaccine available for prevention of COVID-19. Other vaccines to prevent COVID-19 may be available under Emergency Use Authorization.
There is no information on the use of the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine with other vaccines.
If you are pregnant or breastfeeding, discuss your options with your healthcare provider.
No. The Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine does not contain SARS-CoV-2 and cannot give you COVID-19.
When you receive your first dose, you will get a vaccination card to show you when to return for your second dose of the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine. Remember to bring your card when you return.
If you have questions, visit the website or call the telephone number provided below.
To access the most recent Fact Sheets, please scan the QR code provided below.
The vaccination provider may include your vaccination information in your state/local jurisdiction’s Immunization Information System (IIS) or other designated system. This will ensure that you receive the same vaccine when you return for the second dose. For more information about IISs, visit: https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/programs/iis/about.html.
The Countermeasures Injury Compensation Program (CICP) is a federal program that may help pay for costs of medical care and other specific expenses of certain people who have been seriously injured by certain medicines or vaccines, including this vaccine. Generally, a claim must be submitted to the CICP within one (1) year from the date of receiving the vaccine. To learn more about this program, visit https://www.hrsa.gov/cicp/ or call 1-855-266-2427.
The United States FDA has made the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine available under an emergency access mechanism called an EUA. The EUA is supported by a Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) declaration that circumstances exist to justify the emergency use of drugs and biological products during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine has not undergone the same type of review as an FDA- approved or cleared product. FDA may issue an EUA when certain criteria are met, which includes that there are no adequate, approved, and available alternatives. In addition, the FDA decision is based on the totality of the scientific evidence available showing that the product may be effective to prevent COVID-19 during the COVID-19 pandemic and that the known and potential benefits of the product outweigh the known and potential risks of the product. All of these criteria must be met to allow for the product to be used during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The EUA for the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine is in effect for the duration of the COVID-19 EUA declaration justifying emergency use of these products, unless terminated or revoked (after which the products may no longer be used).
La FDA de los Estados Unidos ha permitido que la vacuna contra la COVID-19 de Moderna esté disponible en virtud de un mecanismo de acceso de emergencia denominado EUA. La EUA está respaldada por una declaración del secretario del Departamento de Salud y Servicios Humanos (Health and Human Services, HHS) de que existen circunstancias para justificar el uso de emergencia de fármacos y productos biológicos durante la pandemia de COVID-19.
La vacuna contra la COVID-19 de Moderna no se ha sometido al mismo tipo de revisión que un producto aprobado o autorizado por la FDA. La FDA puede emitir una EUA cuando se cumplen determinados criterios, lo que incluye que no existan alternativas aceptables, aprobadas y disponibles. Además, la decisión de la FDA se basa en la totalidad de la evidencia científica disponible que muestra que el producto puede ser eficaz para prevenir la COVID-19 durante la pandemia de COVID-19 y que los beneficios conocidos y potenciales del medicamento superan sus riesgos conocidos y potenciales. Todos estos criterios deben cumplirse para permitir el uso del producto durante la pandemia de COVID-19.
La EUA para la vacuna contra la COVID-19 de Moderna estará en vigor durante la vigencia de la declaración sobre la COVID-19 de la EUA que justifica el uso de emergencia de estos productos, a menos que se cancele o revoque (después de lo cual los productos ya no se podrán usar).