Anna Leonetti, a 28-year-old Seattle woman due in early June with a baby boy, said she was “excited” to get a dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at University of Washington Medical Center — Northwest on Wednesday. Pregnant women became eligible for vaccination on Wednesday under Washington state eligibility guidelines.
Leonetti said being pregnant during the pandemic has been isolating at times.
“You’re alone 10 hours a day and going through this major life event and people aren’t there to experience it with you,” Leonetti said. “I haven’t hugged my parents in over a year.”
Leonetti, who works in human resources, said she’s excited to visit with vaccinated family and friends soon.
Clinical trials for COVID-19 vaccines did not include pregnant women.
Leonetti said she pored over medical research and considered carefully whether to get vaccinated.
She pointed to a study from Washington state researchers that found COVID-19 mortality among young people who are pregnant was more than 13 times higher than the death rate of peers who were not expecting.
“That’s scary. Your chances are low, but that’s not insignificant,” Leonetti said, adding that preliminary data on vaccinated pregnant women was encouraging and her medical providers encouraged her to get vaccinated.
Early research that suggests antibodies against the coronavirus could be passed from mother to child was intriguing to Leonetti also.
“That was also a reason why I chose to pursue,” Leonetti said. “Who knows when he would have access to the vaccine?”