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Maryland Carroll County Health Department

COVID-19 Vaccination

For dates and times or to register for our vaccine clinics for ages 5+, visit our COVID-19 Vaccination Clinic page.

COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective. They can keep you from getting and spreading the disease, help keep you from getting seriously ill even if you do get COVID-19, and may protect people around you, especially if they are at increased risk for severe illness. 

  • COVID-19 vaccines are free to everyone.
  • You cannot get COVID-19 from any of the vaccines.
  • These vaccines do not affect your DNA in any way.
  • They have very simple, common ingredients.
  • The vaccines were approved and produced quickly because:
    • mRNA vaccines have been in development for many years and are faster to make.
    • Some testing steps were done at the same time to collect data faster.
    • Governments invested enough money so companies could start producing vaccine doses early in the process, even before they were authorized for use.
    • COVID-19 was so widespread, it did not take long to see if the vaccine worked in study volunteers.
  • Long-term health problems are extremely unlikely following any vaccinations, including COVID-19.
  • Short-term side effects like pain in the arm where you received the shot, fatigue, aches, fever, and chills are normal signs that the body is building protection. They should go away in a few days. Learn more on our After Vaccination page.
  • Even if you have had COVID-19 or are at low risk from serious illness due to COVID-19, you should get vaccinated. The way individual people respond to COVID-19 illness is unpredictable and some people can get very sick and have long-term health effects from COVID.
  • If you had a severe or immediate allergic reaction to a COVID-19 vaccine or any ingredient in a COVID-19 vaccine, you should not get that vaccine. Talk with your doctor about allergies and other health conditions.
  • Not sure? Talk with your doctor and get more information from reliable sources (try .gov, .org, and .edu sites over .com sites). 

Three COVID-19 vaccines are available:

COVID-19 Vaccination Schedule*

COVID-19 Vaccination Schedule.

Note: Timeline is approximate. Intervals of 3 months or fewer are converted into weeks per the formula “1 month = 4 weeks.” Intervals of 4 months or more are converted into calendar months.

If you had a severe allergic reaction after a previous dose or if you have a known (diagnosed) allergy to a COVID-19 vaccine ingredient, you should not get that vaccine. If you have been instructed not to get one type of COVID-19 vaccine, you may still be able to get another type.

As with vaccines for other diseases, people who are up to date on their COVID-19 vaccines are optimally protected. Learn more about staying up to date on your COVID-19 vaccines.

*See Guidance for COVID-19 vaccination for people who are moderately or severely immunocompromised for schedule for people who are moderately or severely immunocompromised.

†An 8-week interval may be optimal for some people ages 12 years and older, especially for males ages 12 to 39 years. A shorter interval (3 weeks for Pfizer-BioNTech; 4 weeks for Moderna) between the first and second doses remains the recommended interval for: people who are moderately or severely immunocompromised; adults ages 65 years and older; and others who need rapid protection due to increased concern about community transmission or risk of severe disease.

‡An mRNA COVID-19 vaccine is preferred over the Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine for booster vaccination of people ages 18 years and older. For people ages 12–17 years, only Pfizer-BioNTech can be used. People ages 5–11 years should not receive a booster dose.

It’s easy to find a vaccine. You can visit vaccines.gov and search by zip code or type of vaccine. For Health Department clinics, visit https://cchd.maryland.gov/registration-links/ or call 410-876-4848.

Learn more about the vaccines:

Please note:

  • The Health Department is currently offering all three COVID-19 vaccines approved in the U.S. at their vaccine clinics. Pre-register or walk in. COVID clinic page 
  • If you need assistance to register, please call our call center at 410-876-4848, Monday-Friday, 8 am – 5 pm. 

  • Si tiene 65 años o más o necesita ayuda para registrarse, llame a nuestro centro de llamadas al 410-876-4848, de lunes a viernes, de 8 a. M. A 5 p. M.

 
 
cases are rising - wear a mask, stay 6 feet apart, avoid crowds, get vaccinated when it's your turn