The new COVID-19 bivalent boosters have arrived in San Diego County and limited supplies are now available at vaccination locations across the region, including pharmacies and medical providers.<\/p>\n
The new bivalent boosters were developed to generate an immune response from the original COVID-19 virus, as well as the BA.4 and BA.5 Omicron subvariants.<\/p>\n
The Pfizer\/BioNTech bivalent booster is available for individuals age 12 and older, while the Moderna bivalent booster is for those age 18 and older. The bivalent boosters have not yet been authorized for children under the age of 12. Youths in that age group can get boosted with the previous version of the monovalent Pfizer vaccine.<\/p>\n
San Diegans need to be fully vaccinated before receiving the new booster, meaning they must have received the two-dose primary series of Pfizer, Moderna, or Novavax, or at least one shot of the Janssen vaccine. These vaccinations are still widely available. Anyone who received a previous COVID-19 vaccine less than two months ago can get the bivalent booster shot eight weeks after their last shot.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese new boosters are safe and effective at protecting people against the Omicron variants, which are currently causing the majority of new infections in our region,\u201d said Cameron Kaiser, M.D., M.P.H., County deputy public health officer. \u201cSupplies of the bivalent vaccine will initially be limited, so we ask anyone who is planning to get the new booster to be patient.\u201d<\/p>\n
Initially, County doses will be available at four County-operated locations:<\/p>\n
South Region Live Well Center<\/strong><\/p>\n 150 doses a day<\/p>\n 690 Oxford St, Chula Vista<\/p>\n 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.<\/p>\n East Public Health Center<\/strong><\/p>\n 60 doses a day<\/p>\n 367 N. Magnolia Ave, El Cajon<\/p>\n 8:30 a.m. to 3:15 p.m.<\/p>\n Central Region Public Health Center<\/strong><\/p>\n 60 doses a day<\/p>\n 5202 University Ave<\/p>\n 8:30 a.m. to 3:15 p.m.<\/p>\n North Inland Public Health Center<\/strong><\/p>\n 60 doses a day<\/p>\n 649 W. Mission Ave, Escondido<\/p>\n 9:45 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.<\/p>\n The bivalent boosters will be available in the state\u2019s My Turn system in the near future and will be given on a first-come, first-serve basis. While the initial shipments of the vaccine have been limited, the County expects more doses to arrive in the coming days and weeks, with the next shipment expected to arrive as soon as Friday afternoon.<\/p>\n More information about County vaccine locations is available at\u00a0coronavirus-sd.com<\/a>\u00a0or by calling 2-1-1.<\/p>\n Progreso de vacunaci\u00f3n:<\/strong><\/p>\n