Protect Your Community This Summer - Secure Your Shot!

Summer is here!

Are you up to date on 

your COVID-19 vaccination?

Summer is here and Able South Carolina wants you to stay safe this season. Getting your COVID-19 vaccination & staying up to date on your boosters is a way to ensure safety for you, your family, and your community. 

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Do you need your 1st COVID-19 vaccination? 

This would mean you have not gotten any form of COVID-19 vaccination yet. If so, you have 3 vaccine options: 

1. Pfizer Bivalent MRNA vaccine 
2. Moderna Bivalent MRNA vaccine 
3. Novavax Adjuvanted monovalent vaccine 

The Pfizer vaccine and the Moderna vaccine are Bivalent. This means they protect you from both the original COVID-19 strain and the Omicron strain. 

The Novavax vaccine is Monovalent. This means it protects you from the original COVID-19 strain, only. 

Pfizer 

• For children/adults 5 years or older, you may get one dose of the Pfizer vaccine and be considered vaccinated.  
• Children 6 months to 4 years may receive three doses of the Pfizer vaccines to be considered vaccinated. 

Moderna 

• For children/adults 5 years or older, you may receive one dose of the Moderna vaccine and be considered vaccinated. 
• Children 6 months to 4 years may receive two doses of the Moderna vaccine to be considered vaccinated 

Novavax 

• You must be 12 years or older to receive Novavax. 
• Novavax requires a second dose 3 to 8 weeks after the first dose. 
• This means that if you choose the Novavax vaccine, you will need a total of two shots. 

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Is it time for your follow-up COVID-19 vaccine booster? 

If you have received only one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, it may be time for your booster shot. A booster shot is a follow-up dose of the vaccine to keep you protected from the COVID-19 illness. Here are the next steps to receiving a booster shot. 

Pfizer and Moderna 

• If you are 65 or older, you may receive a second dose 4 months after your first shot. 
• If you are immune compromised, you may receive a second dose 2 months after your first shot. 
• Children who are immune compromised and between the ages of 6 months to 4 years may receive a booster, depending on their vaccine history. For more information on this, ask the healthcare professional giving the vaccines. 

Novavax 

• If you are 18 or older, you may get a second dose 6 months after your first shot. 
• Most healthcare professionals prefer that you get a Pfizer or Moderna vaccine booster because they will protect you against both strains of COVID-19. If you would like one of these vaccines as your booster and have gotten Novavax as your first vaccine, you may get a Moderna or Pfizer booster 2 months after your Novavax shot.  

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What booster should you get if you previously received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine?  

If you previously received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, you are still eligible for a booster, even though that brand is no longer offered. 

Here are your options if you have gotten the Johnson & Johnson vaccine and would like to get a booster shot: 

• Pfizer booster at least 2 months after your first shot. 
• Moderna booster 2 months after your first shot. 
• If you are 18 or older and do not want Moderna or Pfizer, you may receive Novavax as your booster. 

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How can I get my vaccine? 

COVID-19 vaccinations should remain free for the remainder of 2023. There are many places you can go to receive your shot. 

Here are some resources: 

• www.vaccines.gov can help you find a location providing COVID-19 vaccines anywhere in the U.S. This website can also help you find a location to get your flu shot. 
• The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) has a vaccine locator. Simply follow the link and put in your zip code. A list of vaccine sites and contact information for each location will be offered. 
• Able South Carolina is also available to help. Call our vaccine hotline at 1-800-787-6046 or explore our COVID-19 disability access website for information on the COVID-19 virus, vaccines, and treatments.  

SCDisabilityVaccine.org

Contact our Vaccine Access Helpline 

at 1-800-787-6046

As with all healthcare interventions, always consult your healthcare provider with questions or concerns before proceeding with treatment.

Refeences:  

1. Food and Drug Administration (2023, April 18). “Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update:  FDA Authorizes Changes to Simplify Use of Bivalent MRNA COVID-19Vaccines.”: https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/coronavirus-covid-19-update-fda-authorizes-changes-simplify-use-bivalent-mrna-covid-19-vaccines 

2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2023, April 19), “CDC Simplifies COVID-19 Vaccine Recommendations, Allows Older Adults and Immunocompromised Adults to Get Second Dose of the Updated Vaccine.”: https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2023/s0419-covid-vaccines.html  

3. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2023, May 12), “Interim Clinical Considerations for Use of COVID-19 Vaccines in the United States.” https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/covid-19/clinical-considerations/interim-considerations-us.html 

4. Food and Drug Administration (2023, June 6), “Novavax COVID-19 Vaccine, Adjuvanted.” Fact Sheet home https://www.fda.gov/vaccines-blood-biologics/coronavirus-covid-19-cber-regulated-biologics/novavax-covid-19-vaccine-adjuvanted 

5. Food and Drug Administration (2023, June 2) “Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine.” Fact Sheet home page. https://www.fda.gov/vaccines-blood-biologics/coronavirus-covid-19-cber-regulated-biologics/janssen-covid-19-vaccine