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The Updated COVID-19 Booster Has Been Available For A Month… And Ignored By The Vast Majority
Vaccine mandates have caused pushback.
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Markus Spiske/Unsplash
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Topline:
Just 5% of eligible Angelenos have received the new bivalent COVID-19 booster, one month into the rollout. That’s about 355,000 people.
Why This Matters: For the first time the shots match the circulating virus. The tweaked shots target both the original coronavirus strain and the currently circulating omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5. Public health officials expect to see another COVID-19 wave around Thanksgiving, and warn it could be worse if more people don’t get boosted now.
Who Can Get Boosted: The CDC recommends that everyone 12 and older get an updated booster as long as it’s been two months since their last shot.
What About Little Kids? Authorization of the bivalent boosters for younger children ages 5 to 11 may be just a few weeks away. If federal health officials give the green light, the boosters could be available for younger children before the end of October.
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You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
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