When it comes to getting vaccinated against COVID-19 in Taiwan, you have two choices: AstraZeneca or Moderna. Each has its strengths and potential side effects, and so Taiwanese doctors say that people here shouldn’t be too concerned about which vaccine they get. What matters is that they get vaccinated in the first place.
Taiwan’s supply of COVID-19 vaccines continues to grow. The latest shipment, containing 410,000 doses of the Moderna vaccine, arrived Wednesday afternoon.
Most of those vaccinated in Taiwan in the near future are likely to get the Moderna vaccine because Taiwan has a relatively large supply of doses. But there are still doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine ready for use, and doctors like Liu Peng-chih of Shin Kong Wu Ho Su Memorial Hospital say that people shouldn’t be overly concerned about which vaccine they get.
There are of course differences: Lee Ping-ing of the Central Epidemic Command Center says the AstraZeneca vaccine can lead to blood clots, while the Moderna can lead to myocarditis. Rates of pain at the injection site, fever, and chills differ between the two vaccines, too, as does the overall rate of effectiveness.
But the general consensus among doctors here is that serious side effects from these two vaccines are rare, and there is no need to be picky when it comes to which vaccine to get.