Public health nurse Marcia Wright administers a COVID-19 booster shot to Dianna Madsen on Wednesday, Sept. 21 at Nanaimo North Town Centre. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)
booster shots

Fall COVID booster program starts province-wide

Sep 21, 2022 | 3:20 PM

NANAIMO — Public health clinics and pharmacies are now offering COVID-19 booster shots with cold and flu season around the corner.

Formal public health clinics launched in communities across Vancouver Island this week, including at Nanaimo North Town Centre (NNTC) starting on Tuesday.

Invitations through the province’s Get Vaccinated system are seeing the highest risk populations get vaccinated first.

Public health nurse Johanna Chang said the clinic at NNTC will also allow people to get immunized for the flu.

“Starting next week we’ll be offering both vaccines here, COVID as well as flu, so you can book those through the Get Vaccinated system.”

Adults can choose between the bivalent Moderna vaccine, designed to offer better protection against Omicron variants of COVID-19.

Non-mRNA vaccine booster options are also available.

For youth ages five to 17, Moderna or Pfizer mRNA vaccines are offered.

Chang said the NNTC clinic is planned to be open indefinitely based on demand throughout the fall.

“We’re pretty good at this now, we’ve been doing it for well over a year, we were pretty ready to just jump back in and get going.”

She said the first two days of their booster shot campaign were fully booked.

More information on COVID-19 vaccines and necessary registrations for appointments can be found on the province’s Get Vaccinated website.

COVID fall booster appointments can also be booked online with a participating pharmacy across the province. ‘

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