Apparatus for sealing a puncture communicating with a blood vessel includes a bioabsorbable sealing member secured to one end of a filament or other retaining member. The sealing member is delivered through the puncture into the vessel, and refracted against the wall of the vessel to provide temporary hemostasis. The sealing member is rapidly absorbed after exposure within the vessel, e.g., to an aqueous or heated physiological environment (e.g., exposure to blood or body temperature), immediately or shortly after completing a medical procedure via the puncture, e.g., within the time period that the patient is ambulatory. Optionally, extravascular sealing material is delivered into the puncture proximal to the sealing member. The retaining member and/or extravascular material may be bioabsorbable, being absorbed at a slower rate than the sealing member. Alternatively, the filament is removed from the puncture after hemostasis is established.