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I'm High-Risk, Should I Still Wear A Mask? Dr. Mallika Marshall Answers Your COVID Questions

BOSTON (CBS) — Dr. Mallika Marshall is answering your coronavirus vaccine-related medical questions. If you have a question, email her or message her on Facebook or Twitter.

Dr. Mallika is offering her best advice, but as always, consult your personal doctor before making any decisions about your personal health.

"I am 66 and at high risk for COVID due to an autoimmune disease. The CDC released new information about going maskless indoors but does not provide any specifics for vaccinated people who are in high-risk categories." -Robin

If you are immunocompromised you may not have the same level of protection from the COVID-19 vaccines as others, so I would continue to exercise caution when out in public, by wearing a mask and social distancing. Please talk to your personal physician about your relative risk before you shed your mask.

"If the COVID vaccine becomes an annual event, similar to the flu shots, will we have to get the same vaccine (Moderna, Pfizer, or J&J) each year, or can we change it out depending on availability?" -Suzanne

You will probably just get whichever one is available at the time. Mixing and matching vaccines is being studied but if an annual vaccine is needed, it will probably be fine for you to get one version one year and another the next.

"If someone is only in contact with people who are fully vaccinated, why bother getting vaccinated?" -Roberta 

Only about a third of the U.S. population is fully vaccinated so someone who is unvaccinated is undoubtedly going to run into people who are not vaccinated, including many children. So they are really put themselves at risk of getting infected if they don't wear masks and socially distance when in public.

"I received my first Moderna shot out of state on Jan 16th [but not my second shot]. A health agency said I should start all over again with the first shot again. What do you think?" -Charles from Malden 

So about four months have passed since your first vaccine which is a long time. If the second dose is delayed, it is still recommended to get it within six weeks of the first dose. We don't have a lot of data on what happens if you postpone it longer than that. But the CDC says if the second dose is delayed beyond the 6 weeks, you don't need to restart the series. You should still get some benefit from getting that second dose as soon as possible. But I would follow the advice of your health providers.

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