What you should know about the new omicron-specific COVID booster vaccine
Vanderburgh County Health Department administrator Joe Gries recommends anyone who wants to be protected from COVID-19 to receive the latest booster, which has become widely available.
The Food and Drug Administration recently approved new booster vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna. Both are designed to fight omicron subvariants plaguing much of the United States the last several months – BA.4 and BA.5.
“Within Indiana the infection rate is currently dropping, but this booster will be a good way for people to protect themselves and others as we move into the fall and winter months,” Gries said. “We have seen interest from the public to receive the bivalent booster and it seems to be readily available locally and throughout the state. If people decide to receive the booster they shouldn’t have any trouble doing so.”
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Gries said people can receive both the annual flu shot and COVID booster at the same time.
“With both flu and COVID-19 circulating, getting both vaccines is important for prevention of severe disease, hospitalization and death,” Gries said.
He said the omicron variants have been the dominant strain causing COVID-19 infections for months.
“It is impossible to predict what will happen over the fall and winter months, but this new booster will provide protection against the dominant strains and is an easy way for people to protect themselves,” Gries said. “The Health Department recommends anyone who is eligible to receive the new COVID booster.”
Anyone age 6 months and older is eligible to receive the latest free COVID-19 vaccine. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced that people age 12 and older are newly eligible to receive a new bivalent booster that was updated to be more effective against new strains of the virus.
The updated bivalent Pfizer booster is available for people 12 and older, and the updated bivalent Moderna booster is available for people 18 and older, two months after either their primary dose or most recent booster dose, Gries said. Eligible individuals can get either the Pfizer or Moderna updated booster, regardless of which primary dose they received.
Where to get the COVID-19 omicron booster
If two months have passed since you completed your primary vaccination or since you received your most recent booster, the CDC recommends you get an updated booster. The Health Department has the Pfizer version of the new booster; people can call 812-435-2400 and choose option 7 to schedule an appointment. The IDOH has also added new locations where people can receive the new booster throughout the state. People can go to www.ourshot.in.gov to find specific locations near them.
Boosters are also available at CVS, Walgreens, Walmart and other pharmacies. Contact your local store or go online to schedule an appointment.
Ascension's retail pharmacies now have the bivalent Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines available, said Miranda Meister, an Ascension spokeswoman. Call the Ascension St. Vincent Apothecary on St. Mary's Drive in Evansville at 812-485-4365 or Ascension St. Vincent Epworth Pharmacy in Newburgh at 812-469-8177.
Information about vaccines through Deaconess can be found online at Deaconess.com/vaccine.
Booster shots also available in Western Kentucky
Clay Horton, public health director for Green River District Health Department, said 85 percent of new COVID-19 cases are caused by the BA.5 omicron subvariant.
The Green River District Health Department encompasses Henderson, Daviess, Hancock, Ohio, McLean, Webster and Union counties.
"The No. 1 thing you can do to protect yourself from COVID-19 is to stay up to date on your vaccinations," Horton said. "We know that the protection we get from vaccines can wane with time and the latest available vaccines are targeted to the specific variants that are circulating in our community right now. As we approach winter when we know respiratory viruses spread rapidly, now is the time to make sure you are protected against both COVID-19 and flu. It is fine to get both vaccinations at the same time."
The new boosters are widely available in the Henderson community and are carried by most retail pharmacies, Horton said. They are also available at many health clinics, including the health department.
"Vaccines.gov is a great website where people can find a provider near them that is offering COVID-19 vaccine boosters," Horton said.
Anita Owens, director of nursing for the Green River District Health Department, said further information regarding COVID-19 and vaccines can be found by logging on to govstatus.egov.com/kycovid19.
Contact Gordon Engelhardt at gordon.engelhardt@courierpress.com or on Twitter @EngGordon
This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: What to know about the new COVID booster in Indiana, Kentucky
