MINNEAPOLIS – Doses of the latest COVID-19 booster vaccines will be released Wednesday in Minnesota. The “bivalent” vaccine is a single vaccine that targets two variants.
Dosages are available for anyone over the age of 12. People who got their last dose of the vaccine more than two months ago are eligible.
Appointments are open at the state vaccination at the Mall of America. Hy-Vee says he also has a limited source of vaccines. Duluth, St. Paul Midway, Rochester and Moorhead state will begin scheduling next week.
Medical experts like Dr. George Morris of CentraCare say that while COVID-19 is still more fatal than the flu and more contagious than a cold, it doesn’t have the same impact it used to have.
“In all honesty, most Minnesotans have been exposed to COVID or have some point of antibodies created from the vaccine,” Morris said.
The COVID-19 vaccine will most likely be an annual vaccine that is updated annually like the flu shot, Dr. Anthony Fauci said Tuesday at a White House news briefing on the coronavirus response.
But Morris said everyone wants it.
“For a significant portion of our at-risk population, this is where I would inspire retreats,” he said. a life-and-death situation. “
However, for others over the age of 65 or who run with other people who have them, the booster seat has the protections you need.
“I just think it’s the safest thing to do. Basically, I don’t need to get sick,” Morris said.
The Minnesota Department of Health has a few hundred appointments for bivalent vaccines at the Mall of America, but says it has the ability to succeed in thousands if demand grows so large.
Last week, CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky approved the council following majority votes from a panel of third-party CDC vaccine advisors backing the updated Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines. The Food and Drug Administration issued its authorization Wednesday.
“This advice follows a comprehensive clinical evaluation and in-depth clinical discussion. If you are eligible, there is no time to get your COVID-19 withdrawal and I strongly urge you to get it,” Walensky said in a statement.
The new formulations mark the first really extensive redesign of COVID-19 vaccines since their implementation before the pandemic.
The bottles of the company’s so-called “bivalent” plans combine a component of its original “prototype” plans with a new one designed to target Omicron’s BA. 4 and BA. 5 subvariants. The CDC estimates that those strains now make up virtually both one and both infections nationwide.
Federal fitness officials also touted the launch as a key update to simplify the nation’s vaccination plan, as Americans can now “upgrade” on their COVID-19 coverage with a single shot of the updated vaccine.