The Champaign-Urbana Public Health District will be hosting COVID-19 bivalent vaccination clinics beginning the week of Sept. 12.
Bivalent vaccines make a person more equipped for protection against the Omicron variant of COVID-19. They are authorized for use as a singular booster dose at least two months after a primary or booster vaccination, according to a press release by CVS.
These clinics will be held Monday through Thursday throughout the week and will have both Pfizer and Moderna vaccines available for usage.
On Sept. 1, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommended the use of updated COVID-19 boosters from Pfizer for people over 11 years old. They also approved the use of COVID-19 boosters from Moderna for people over 17 years old.
These updated COVID-19 boosters add protein components of Omicron to the current vaccine composition in order to assist in reviving protection that has decreased since people got their previous vaccines.
The boosters target specific variants of COVID-19 that are higher in transmissibility and also more easily able to evade immunity.
Currently, there is limited bivalent vaccination supply. Due to this limitation, the CUPHD will begin offering vaccines to residents 65-years-old and older and plans to expand distribution as more supply becomes readily available. Appointments will also be required due to limited availability of both vaccines.
According to the CDC, the “autho
rization of updated COVID-19 boosters, and CDC’s recommendation for use, are critical next steps forward in our country’s vaccination program—a program that has helped provide increased protection against COVID-19 disease and death.”