Every day, clinicians who serve migrants and immigrants are posing new questions related to COVID-19: Should a worker get a third dose of the vaccine? Can the COVID-19 vaccine and the flu shot be administered on the same day, considering the struggle a worker may have to get to the clinic? What do I say about Ivermectin when asked? Since early 2021, as the vaccines began to be rolled out, Migrant Clinicians Network has gathered these questions and published their answers in “FAQ: The COVID-19 Vaccine and Migrant, Immigrant, and Food & Farm Worker Patients,” which is published on our active blog, Clinician to Clinician. The FAQ is available in English and Spanish and is regularly updated with new questions, which appear at the top of the FAQ.
In early September, the White House issued a federal rule to require businesses with more than 100 employees to require their workers to be vaccinated against COVID-19. This change is significant. Prior to the mandate, the vaccination card was a health record. With mandates in place, the vaccine card became a required document for employment. This affects many workers who are unauthorized to live and work in the US. Many work under an alias name, but use their given name when accessing health care. In mid-September, we updated our FAQ with the following three questions and answers, to help guide clinicians who serve workers who use an alias at their workplace. These questions are edited. See the complete FAQ on our website to read these and 30 additional questions, in English or Spanish: www.migrantclinician.org/blog.
What considerations should I make for migrant and immigrant workers getting the COVID-19 vaccine, now that there is a federal vaccine mandate as well as the potential for mandates in other workplaces?
Many migrants and immigrants work under alias names. It is critical that clinicians discuss with migrant and immigrant patients whether the patient will need the card in the patient’s name or in their alias name. The patient may need two cards. If possible, the clinician should include the worker’s name and alias (“AKA”) name in the state’s vaccine database, which is accessible to health care providers and health authorities but not to employers.
A worker got vaccinated under his own name. He uses an alias at work. Now, there’s a vaccine mandate at his work, but his vaccine card doesn’t match his work name. What should he do?
We recommend that the clinician issue a second card with the alias name. If possible, the clinician is encouraged to include the alias (“AKA”) in the state’s vaccine database, so that both cards hold information that is verifiable in the database that is accessible only to health care providers and health authorities.
A worker got vaccinated under her own name. She uses an alias at work. Her workplace held a mandatory vaccine clinic for those who couldn’t show proof of vaccination, so she got vaccinated a second time because she couldn't prove her first vaccination. What are the health implications of double vaccination?
There are limited data on patients who have received more vaccinations than is recommended.
Initial data from the CDC about people who have received a third dose showed similar or more mild side effects to those of the two-shot series.1 These side effects include short-term fever, chills, and other flu-like symptoms.
Read our complete FAQ in English and Spanish on our blog: www.migrantclinician.org/blog. Be sure to subscribe to MCN's blog and follow on social media to hear when the FAQ is updated with new questions.
REFERENCES:
1 Hause AM, Baggs J, Gee J, et al. Safety Monitoring of an Additional Dose of COVID-19 Vaccine — United States, August 12–September 19, 2021. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2021;70:1379–1384. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm7039e4
Read this article in the Fall 2021 issue of Streamline here!
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