If your provider is waiting for Moderna Omicron booster doses, there’s plenty of Pfizer

I’m happy that COVID-19 Omicron boosters that target the dominant subvariants have been given to over 50,000 Arizonans as of last Wednesday. This is the most effective approach to ensure that your immune defense is current, particularly if you are elderly or suffer from a compromised immune system.

As the vaccine manufacturer ramps up production to satisfy requests, one issue facing the country is a temporarily limited supply of the Moderna Omicron booster, which is approved for use in adults 18 years of age and older. State health departments have been informed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that the Moderna supply concerns should be resolved in about two weeks.

However, there are ample supplies of the Pfizer Omicron booster, which is available to those 12 and older.

If a provider tells you it doesn’t have the Moderna Omicron booster available at the moment and you don’t want to wait, please check azhealth.gov/FindVaccine to get a list of providers offering Pfizer Bivalent Booster (age 12+). Our Vaccine Finder allows you to filter by vaccine type to find providers in your area offering this booster, also referred to as bivalent because it targets the original virus causing COVID-19 in addition to the Omicron variant.

You also can get your influenza vaccine at the same time, so be sure to double the benefit from your visit.

Making sure you are up-to-date on COVID-19 vaccination protects you not just from hospitalization and death but from long COVID. As with other COVID-19 vaccines that have dramatically reduced the chances of severe illness, these boosters have met rigorous standards for safety.

So please, get the Moderna booster Dose as soon as you can, even if it means doing a little checking online should you need to look for the Pfizer version.