Double dose: N.L. Health Services opening fall vaccinations for flu and COVID-19

Starting Tuesday, the Newfoundland and Labrador Health Authority is taking appointments for COVID and flu vaccines, with clinics starting next week.

Starting Oct. 16, the province will be distributing a COVID-19 vaccine targeted to the Omicron XBB.1.5 variant to more closely match recent circulating strains of the coronavirus.

Dr. Janice Fitzgerald, the province's chief medical officer of health, is encouraging people in high-risk groups to get the updated shot, including people 65 years and older, people with underlying medical conditions, and people who identify as Indigenous.

The clinics, run by the health authority, can be booked online, or by calling a toll-free number. Each area of the province has a separate booking system.

The COVID-19 shot is recommended to anyone who hasn't had a coronavirus vaccination or an infection in the last six months.

The shots are also available from pharmacies, many of which are already taking appointments, either by phone or using their own online booking system.

Few up to date on vaccination

According to provincial government figures, only 23.4 per cent of people have received a shot since September 2022, with uptake much better among older Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.

Fitzgerald is warning that even people who may have had more mild COVID-19 infections should still get boosted.

"What we do know is that the immunity wanes over time, so if it has been quite a while since you had either COVID or the vaccine, you know, you could have more severe disease this time around," she told reporters during a news conference last month.

The clinics run by the health service will be offering both flu and COVID-19 vaccines, which can be taken at the same time, one in each arm.

COVID-19 continues to to be deadly for some people, with 42 people hospitalized during the Health Department's most recent reporting period: Aug. 27-Sept. 23, including eight people in intensive care. Four people died over the period.

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