Oklahoma Gets First Round Of COVID-19 Omicron Booster Vaccine

According to the White House, a new milestone has been reached in the COVID-19 pandemic with updated vaccines that match the variant of the virus currently spreading.

Those reformulated vaccines combine parts of the original vaccine with components that targets Omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5.

Both Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are being shipped out nationwide. Soon, they will be available for Oklahomans.

The Oklahoma State Health Department said it will roll out the next COVID-19 vaccine booster this week. 

Related: New Bivalent COVID-19 Booster Vaccines Comes To Oklahoma

With thousands of doses, they have more than enough for Oklahomans.

“We would love to see everyone who is eligible for a booster vaccination to be boosted,” state epidemiologist Jolianne Stone said.  

“It’s being released at, really, a good time because we know the flu vaccine is getting ready to be released,” Oklahoma City-County Health Department chief of clinical services Staceee Hoye said. “We recommend that people consider getting their COVID booster along with the flu vaccine.”

The Oklahoma State Department of Health received 27,900 Moderna boosters and 45,900 Pfizer boosters.

“Anyone who is 12 and older is eligible for the new booster,” Hoye said. “We do recommend that people wait at least two months since their previous booster to get this new omicron booster.”

If you have contracted COVID-19 recently, health officials recommend waiting three months before getting the booster.

“We recommend individuals reach out to their provider or to their local county health department to see if they have that booster available prior to setting up their appointment,” Stone said.

“We’re excited to say that we have our first allotment of the new omicron booster,” Hoye said. “We will be making that available starting Thursday.”

As the omicron variant circulates in Oklahoma, state health officials said the booster is the best way to prevent severe illness or death.

“They are interchangeable -- so if you go somewhere and they don’t have Moderna, but you got the Moderna primary series -- it is fine,” Hoye said. “You can still get that Pfizer.”

The state health department said it will be getting more shipments of the vaccine in the coming weeks.