Desert Messenger

30 www.DesertMessenger.com February 3, 2021 Just another shot in the arm Get updates from Sheriff's Office UPDATES FROM SHERIFF The La Paz County Sheriff's Offi ce would like to remind everyone that you can have up to date emergency information sent to your cell phone via text message by texting your zip code to 888777. This is a website called "NIXLE". We send the fol- lowing type of information to your cell phone: 'road closures, severe weather alerts, serious crime infor- mation, Amber alerts, etc. By sign- ing up with NIXLE, we are able to communicate important informa- tion to everyone quickly and effi - ciently via text message. Please sign up today, the service is free. County Landfill Transfer Station Winter Hours The Quartzsite Transfer Station is now on their WINTER hours. They are open Sunday thru Wednes- day, 7:30am to 2:30pm. Dump your trash for free at the Transfer Station. Please cover your load. For more info call the Main landfi ll 928- 916-1253 or Main offi ce at 928-854- 9152. The transfer station is locat- ed north of Town, just off Hwy. 95, near the Sewer Treatment Plant. Like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ DesertMessengerNews Follow on Twitter @DesertMessenger @QuartzsiteRain Medicare does not cover dental care 1 . That means if you need dental work done, it can cost you hundreds or even thousands of dollars out of your own pocket. Get Dental Insurance from Physicians Mutual Insurance Company. It helps cover over 350 procedures — from cleanings and fillings to crowns and dentures. • See any dentist you want, but save more with one in our network • No deductible, no annual maximum • Immediate coverage for preventive care Call to get your FREE Information Kit 1-888-652-5770 dental50plus.com/desmes 1 "Medicare & You," Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, 2020 Includes the Participating (in GA: Designated) Providers and Preventive Benefi ts Rider. Product not available in all states. Acceptance guaranteed for one insurance policy/certifi cate of this type. Contact us for complete details about this insurance solicitation. This specifi c offer is not available in CO, LA, NY; call 1-800-969-4781 or respond for similar offer. Certifi cate C250A (ID: C250E; PA: C250Q); Insurance Policy P150 (GA: P150GA; NY: P150NY; OK: P150OK; TN: P150TN); Rider kinds B438/B439 (GA: B439B). 6255 DENTAL Insurance By Jackie Deal Whoopee! I got my corona virus vaccination! NO pain. NO bad symptoms: i.e. headache, nausea, weakness, lethargy. None of 'em. I'm scheduled for my second shot in February. Now those of you who wish you could get the shot; let me assure you, I didn't pay or fi nagle to go to the head of the line. I'm a Mercy Hospital Hos- pice volunteer and all employees and volunteers were vaccinated. And for those of you who say, "What? Me get vaccinated? Nope! Not on your life." That's okay, 'cus it's your life. I'm protecting mine; you can protect or not pro- tect yours as you see fi t. Once both shots take effect I should be pro- tected from the unvaccinated. There are tons of questions about the vaccine. I know I was skeptical: how could they produce a SAFE vaccine so fast? Well, maybe there are some an- swers in the process used to produce a vaccine. Let's go through it. According to WebMD research- ers are testing 68 vaccines in clini- cal trials on humans, and 20 have reached the fi nal stages of testing. At least 90 preclinical vaccines are under active investigation in ani- mals. Wow! First there is "preclinical testing": Scientists test a new vaccine on cells and then give it to animals such as mice or monkeys to see if it produc- es an immune response. I know, animal lovers decry this. But hey! I feel for the poor wild turkeys in our park in Oregon every time they catch and depose them. It's all a personal attitude! Phase 1 of the trials: Scientists give the vaccine to a small number of people to test safety and dosage, as well as to confi rm that it stimu- lates the immune system. PHASE 2 EXPANDED TRIALS: Scientists give the vaccine to hun- dreds of people split into groups, such as children and the elderly, to see if the vaccine acts differently in them. These trials further test the vaccine's safety. PHASE 3 EFFICACY TRIALS: Sci- entists give the vaccine to thousands of people and wait to see how many become infected, compared with volunteers who received a placebo. These trials can determine if the vaccine protects against the corona- virus, measuring what's known as the effi cacy rate. Phase 3 trials are also large enough to reveal evidence of relatively rare side effects. Ordinarily, this process takes years but it was expedited by com- bining phases. Some vaccines com- bined Phase 1 and 2 trials. Many countries have given emergency authorization based on preliminary evidence that the vaccines are safe and effective. China, Russia and other countries have begun admin- istering vaccines before detailed Phase 3 trial data was made pub- lic. Experts have warned of serious risks from jumping ahead of these results. If investigators observe worrying symptoms in volunteers, they can pause the trial. After an in- vestigation, the trial may resume or be abandoned. The goal, as with any vaccination, is called "herd immunity." Don't you love that? It makes you feel like you're just a bunch of cattle! But seriously, for this some experts say about 60% to 70% of the population would need to develop antibodies. You can get those from the vaccine or getting and recovering from COV- ID-19. In other words, if not enough people get vaccinated, it may prove diffi cult to reach herd immunity. So, I invite you to become part of the herd: either through vaccination or contracting Covid 19.

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