Sauk County health care providers back COVID-19 boosters
COVID-19 vaccines are produced in a lab. (Photo courtesy of Johnson and Johnson)
Reedsburg Area Medical Center has joined others in Sauk County supporting updated recommendations to provide COVID-19 boosters to certain populations.
Others backing the effort include Sauk Prairie Healthcare, SSM Health St. Clare Hospital-Baraboo and Sauk County Public Health. The providers shared a message saying that vaccines are the best way to protect yourself, reduce the virus’s spread and prevent new variants from emerging.
Boosters are common for many vaccines, said Dr. Maureen Murphy, vice president of medical affairs for SSM Health St. Clare Hospital-Baraboo.
“The recommendation for booster doses does not mean that the COVID-19 vaccines aren’t working. The COVID-19 vaccines have been working very well to prevent serious illness, hospitalization and death, even against the highly contagious Delta variant,” she said in a joint news release from health care providers.
Those eligible to receive the booster include come Pfizer and Moderna recipients, particularly those 65 and older, residents of long-term care facilities, adults with an increased risk to COVID-19 exposure and transmission, and adults with certain underlying conditions. The booster should be given at least six months after the second dose. A half dose of the initial Moderna vaccine will be administered for the Moderna booster.
All Johnson and Johnson COVID-19 vaccine recipients who are 18 or older should get a booster at least two months after the primary dose. Any available vaccine, such as Pfizer or Moderna, can be given as a booster to Johnson and Johnson recipients.
Talk to your health care provider if you have questions about the booster.
Side effects so far have been mostly mild or moderate and lasted a few days, similar to those from initial doses, said Dr. Elizabeth Baker, Reedsburg Area Medical Center’s chief executive officer.
“We also encourage you to be patient. There is ample vaccine supply for everyone, and it may take some time for everyone who needs a booster dose to get one,” she said.
Dr. Janelle Hupp of Sauk Prairie Healthcare reminded the public that it’s possible to get a COVID-19 booster and flu vaccine at the same time. She noted that the COVID-19 vaccine is approved for those 12 and older and IDs and insurance aren’t required to receive one.
