Beautiful Virgin Islands

Wednesday, Aug 27, 2025

An emergency-room doctor tested positive for coronavirus 9 days after getting vaccinated. That's not a sign the vaccine didn't work.

An emergency-room doctor tested positive for coronavirus 9 days after getting vaccinated. That's not a sign the vaccine didn't work.

Coronavirus vaccines require two shots to be fully effective, and it can take up to a few weeks for vaccinated people to develop immunity.

Josh Mugele worked the night shift on Christmas. Though he had been tending to coronavirus patients since the start of the pandemic, his Georgia hospital was stretched to capacity like never before. There was one small comfort, though: Mugele had received the first dose of Pfizer and BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine on December 20.

"I had three shifts in a row right up to the vaccine date," Mugele, an emergency-room doctor at Northeast Georgia Medical Center in Gainesville, Georgia, told Business Insider. "I was just really nervous I was going to get exposed before that. I honestly felt really a sense of relief when, on the 20th, I actually was able to get the vaccine, and I thought I'd kind of crossed the finish line."

Then on Monday, he came down with a headache and a cough. The following day, he tested positive for the coronavirus.

"I was scared at first, but more than anything I think I was angry," Mugele said. "I've had maximum exposure, as much as any ER doc in the country, and I've been spared for 10 months, and then to get it right after I got the vaccine is just stupid and frustrating."

Pfizer vaccine given as 2 injections 21 days apart


Mugele always knew there was a chance of getting sick after his first dose.

Pfizer and BioNTech's vaccine is given as two injections 21 days apart. The two-dose regimen was found to be 95% effective at preventing symptomatic COVID-19, but a single dose provided a lot less protection. That's why it's imperative for vaccine recipients to return for a second shot.

It's also unknown whether the vaccine prevents infection altogether, and it can take up to a few weeks postvaccination for the body to develop immunity in the form of antibodies against the virus.

"That first eight days is really critical," Mugele said. "People still have to be absolutely isolated. They have to wear their mask, they have to wash their hands, they have to avoid going out before they get the benefit of the vaccine."


Hoag Hospital in Newport Beach, California, administering its first doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine on December 17.


'This was just dumb luck'


Mugele said he still planned on getting his second dose on January 12, assuming his symptoms have disappeared for about a week beforehand. He also stressed that his infection wasn't a sign of anything wrong with the vaccine.

"This was just dumb luck," he said. "I happened to be exposed within a few days of getting the vaccine, but this still is the best tool we have for fighting the virus."

As an emergency-room doctor, Mugele also had a higher risk of infection than many Americans, especially because his hospital is filling with coronavirus patients.

"Our hospital's pretty much like every other hospital in the country," he said. "We have higher volumes than we've ever had."

The US vaccine rollout is going slowly


The number of US coronavirus hospitalizations has tripled over the past two months, reaching a peak of nearly 125,000 on Tuesday. Mugele said he felt sorrow that another doctor would have to cover his shift during this critical time.

"The shifts these days are really, really hard," he said. "We're seeing people in nonideal conditions, like in the hallway or the waiting room, so it's a stressful, stressful work environment. Everybody is already stretched thin."

While vaccines are still the quickest way to halt the pandemic, the US's immunization rollout has been painfully slow compared with what federal officials had anticipated. Earlier this month, the Trump administration predicted 20 million Americans would get a coronavirus shot by year's end. The US has shipped out about 14 million doses so far, but only about 2.6 million people have received their first injections, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday.

"It's really important that, until we have widespread vaccination rates in the entire country, even if you have both doses of vaccine, you still have to be careful," Mugele said. "You still have to wear your mask out in public, and you still have to avoid large gatherings, and you still have to wash your hands. We're still in the thick of this thing."

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Manhunt in Australia: Armed Anti-Government Suspect Kills Police Officers Sent to Arrest Him
China Launches World’s Most Powerful Neutrino Detector
How Beijing-Linked Networks Shape Elections in New York City
Ukrainian Refugee Iryna Zarutska Fled War To US, Stabbed To Death
Elon Musk Sues Apple and OpenAI Over Alleged App Store Monopoly
2 Australian Police Shot Dead In Encounter In Rural Victoria State
Vietnam Evacuates Hundreds of Thousands as Typhoon Kajiki Strikes; China’s Sanya Shuts Down
UK Government Delays Decision on China’s Proposed London Embassy Amid Concerns Over Redacted Plans
A 150-Year Tradition to Be Abolished? Uproar Over the Popular Central Park Attraction
A new faith called Robotheism claims artificial intelligence isn’t just smart but actually God itself
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner Purchases Third Property Amid Housing Tax Reforms Debate
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Italian Facebook Group Sharing Intimate Images Without Consent Shut Down Amid Police Investigation
Dutch Foreign Minister Resigns Amid Deadlock Over Israel Sanctions
Trump and Allies Send Messages of Support to Ukraine on Independence Day Amid Ongoing Conflict
China Reels as Telegram Chat Group Shares Hidden-Camera Footage of Women and Children
Sam Nicoresti becomes first transgender comedian to win Edinburgh Comedy Award
Builders uncover historic human remains in Lancashire house renovation
Australia Wants to Tax Your Empty Bedrooms
MotoGP Cameraman Narrowly Avoids Pedro Acosta Crash at Hungarian Grand Prix
FBI Investigates John Bolton Over Classified Documents in High-Profile Raids
Report reveals OpenAI pitched national ChatGPT Plus subscription to UK ministers
Labour set to freeze income tax thresholds in long-term 'stealth' tax raid
Coca‑Cola explores sale of Costa coffee chain
Trial hears dog walker was chased and fatally stabbed by trio
Restaurateur resigns from government hospitality council over tax criticism
Spanish City funfair shut after serious ride injury
Suspected arson at Ilford restaurant leaves three in critical condition
Tottenham beat Manchester City to go top of Premier League
Bank holiday heatwave to hit 30°C before remnants of Hurricane Erin arrive
UK to deploy immigration advisers to West Africa to block fake visas
Nurse who raped woman continued working for a year despite police alert
Drought forces closures of England’s canal routes, canceling boat holidays
Sweet tooth scents: food-inspired perfumes surge as weight-loss drugs suppress appetites
Experts warn Britain dangerously reliant on imported food
Family of Notting Hill Carnival murder victim call event unmanageable
Bunkers, Billions and Apocalypse: The Secret Compounds of Zuckerberg and the Tech Giants
Ukraine Declares De Facto War on Hungary and Slovakia with Terror Drone Strikes on Their Gas Lifeline
Animated K-pop Musical ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Becomes Netflix’s Most-Watched Original Animated Film
New York Appeals Court Voids Nearly $500 Million Civil Fraud Penalty Against Trump While Upholding Fraud Liability
Elon Musk tweeted, “Europe is dying”
Far-Right Activist Convicted of Incitement Changes Gender and Demands: "Send Me to a Women’s Prison" | The Storm in Germany
Hungary Criticizes Ukraine: "Violating Our Sovereignty"
Will this be the first country to return to negative interest rates?
Child-free hotels spark controversy
North Korea is where this 95-year-old wants to die. South Korea won’t let him go. Is this our ally or a human rights enemy?
Hong Kong Launches Regulatory Regime and Trials for HKD-Backed Stablecoins
China rehearses September 3 Victory Day parade as imagery points to ‘loyal wingman’ FH-97 family presence
Trump Called Viktor Orbán: "Why Are You Using the Veto"
×