Sounds like: 'Vaccines only work for 6 months, not effective against variants, get ready for annual shots, we'll need to trim down the safety trials even more - to save everyone'.

And that's the crux. It becomes hard to navigate and calculate the pros and cons of these vaccines. The mere fact that they're now discovering this clotting risk demonstrates how not completing Phase 3 trials has consequences. Keep in mind that Moderna's Phase 3 trial is not complete until October of 2022.

I actually got the J&J shot just before news came out about its clotting trouble. I have a family member with a weakened immune system, and I work in a school surrounded by kids and their snot, so I don't want to bring it home. (Granted, I could still get infected after being immunized, but the viral load would not be as great, meaning I wouldn't be spewing as much virus when I sneezed at home, in theory anyway.) In fact, just last week one of my students had COVID. So I'm not anti-vax. I think vaccine is one of the most profound scientific advances of our time.

On the other hand, I am the breadwinner. I'm not much help to my family if I'm dead or incapacitated, and given my relatively good health, COVID poses little threat to me. Ultimately it comes down to not only the science, but what is being communicated to us. I'm not sure if I'll get another vaccine for COVID. I certainly won't be getting a 'booster'.