Midlands hospital making COVID booster shots available at its vaccination clinic

Lexington Medical Center will now provide COVID-19 booster shots at its vaccination clinic, hospital officials said Monday.

Individuals eligible for the booster can get the vaccine at the hospital’s clinic at Brookland Baptist Church. That’s at 1066 Sunset Blvd., near the intersection with N 12th Street and about 1.5 miles from the Gervais Street bridge.

Both the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control have approved booster doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for specific groups.

No booster is currently available for people who received the single shot Janssen (Johnson & Johnson) vaccine, or the two doses of Moderna.

Only those who are at least 6 months removed from getting their Pfizer-BioNTech primary series vaccinations are eligible for the booster, Lexington Medical Center officials said in a news release.

The hospital said groups who should receive the booster include those:

65 years and older and residents in long-term care

50- to 64-year-olds with underlying medical conditions

Others currently eligible for the booster, who can get the shot based on their individual benefits and risks, includes:

18- to 49-year-olds with underlying medical conditions

18- to 64-year-olds who are at increased risk for COVID-19 exposure and transmission because of occupational or institutional setting

The Brookland Baptist Church clinic will be open Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., and from 1-4 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. Appointments are not required and walk ins will be accepted.

Anyone looking to get the Pfizer-BioNTech booster shot is asked to bring their COVID-19 vaccination card showing their first two doses of the vaccine, according to the release. The booster is the same dosage as the first two dosages of the Pfizer-BioNTech, hospital officials said.

For more information, or to schedule an appointment, go to LexMed.com/Covid.

More than 51% of South Carolina residents are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to DHEC.

South Carolina has reported more than 841,000 (confirmed and probable) cases of the coronavirus and 12,080 deaths.