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Matt Percy, MD, Co-Chief Medical Officer, Rifle Site Medical Director

I last wrote an update for our July 2022 newsletter on COVID vaccines and updates. At that time, I was excited about that vaccines for the original strain of COVID-19 are available for anyone six months and older and second boosters available for the highest risk people.

Just three months later, and now I’m happy to share that the Omicron Boosters are available.

You may have heard that new booster shots which are designed to protect against the latest variants of COVID were recently approved under Emergency Use Authorization. The new booster shot is a bivalent vaccine, meaning that it targets both the original strain and Omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5, which became the dominant subvariants in the United States over the summer. The previous booster formulation only protected against the original version of the virus. The bivalent vaccine replaces the previous booster as the recommended option for anyone 12 and older, but is not approved to be given as a primary series.

Anyone 5 and older who is at least 2 months out from their most recent dose is eligible and recommended to receive the bivalent booster and I recommend you get it to protect yourselves, your family and our community as we enter the fall and winter season where respiratory illnesses tend to be more common. Mountain Family Health Centers has these vaccines on hand and available to give to patients and provider and nursing visits.

To make an appointment, call 970-945-2840.