Boosters for All Three Coronavirus Vaccines Available in Washington State for Eligible Individuals

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Following recommendations from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, booster doses for all three coronavirus vaccines are now available in Washington state for eligible individuals, the state Department of Health announced Friday.

Last month, providers began offering booster doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for older adults at higher risk for severe illness. More than 345,000 doses, including third doses for people with moderately or severely compromised immune systems, have been administered in the state, according to DOH.

Now, health care providers can begin to offer booster doses of Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines as well.

According to DOH, you may be eligible to receive a booster dose at least six months after completing your Pfizer or Moderna vaccine series if you are:

* 65 years old or older.

* 18 or older and live in a long-term care setting or a high-risk setting.



* 18 or older and have an underlying medical condition or have "increased risk of social inequities."

For those who received a single-dose J&J vaccine, officials are recommending everyone 18 and older seek a booster dose.

Pfizer and J&J boosters are both full doses, while the Moderna booster is a half dose.

The CDC and FDA has found that "mixing and matching" boosters is safe and effective, DOH said Friday, so the booster dose does not have to be the same vaccine brand as an individual's initial vaccine series.

"A booster dose will further protect fully vaccinated individuals by increasing the vaccine's effectiveness in their bodies, which otherwise may wane over time," Washington state Secretary of Health Umair Shah said in a statement.