New COVID-19 booster shots available in Sonoma County

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Updated COVID-19 booster shots specifically formulated to protect against the highly contagious omicron variant are now available in Sonoma County.

The new boosters, known as bivalent vaccines, are made by Pfizer and Moderna. The Food and Drug Administration has authorized the Pfizer bivalent booster for anyone 12 and older and the Moderna bivalent booster for anyone 18 and older. The bivalent boosters can be given two months after completion of the primary series or the most recent booster dose of a monovalent COVID-19 vaccine. The original monovalent vaccines will still be used for the primary vaccine series and booster doses for the 6 month to 11-year age groups.

In Sonoma County, those eligible for the new booster can obtain a shot through primary health care providers, health centers and pharmacies, as well as Sonoma County’s vaccine clinic at the Roseland Community Center and the LHI clinic at the Rohnert Park Community Center, however supplies may be limited and not all COVID-19 vaccine providers will have doses at first. Sonoma County expects to receive more supply in the coming weeks.

“The new boosters will provide the best protection against omicron, and I encourage everyone to get one,” said Dr. Sundari Mase, Sonoma County’s health officer. “The booster doses are very effective at preventing severe illness and can help lower hospitalizations and deaths during the fall and winter when the spread of respiratory viruses is at its peak.”

A list of vaccine clinics in Sonoma County is available at SoCoEmergency.org/vaccine.

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Media Contact: 
Matt Brown, Communication Specialist 
Matt.Brown@Sonoma-County.org
(707) 565-3040
575 Administration Drive, Suite 104A
Santa Rosa, CA 95403