Update on bivalent COVID boosters for 5-11 year olds

. Posted in News, Coronavirus, COVID-19

To the parents/guardians of InterMed patients ages 5-11, 

Patients as young as 5 years old are now eligible to receive the updated, bivalent Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 boosters if they completed their primary series or received their last booster at least two months ago. We will update you when we can open appointments at our vaccine clinic once we receive our supply from the state.

In addition to authorizing these updated boosters for 5-11 year olds today, the FDA and U.S. CDC announced that the monovalent mRNA COVID vaccines are no longer authorized as boosters for children in this age group.

Because of this action, we must cancel the booster appointments scheduled for today through Wednesday, Oct. 19 for patients between 5-11 years old.

What these developments mean for your children between 6 months and 11 years of age:

  • Children 5-11 years old are eligible for a single booster dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine, Bivalent if it has been at least two months since they completed a primary series or last received a booster.
    • If your child is 5-11 years old and scheduled for a booster only: The appointment has been canceled. You can reschedule once we let you know that we have received our supply.
    • If your child is 5-11 years of old and scheduled for a booster AND a flu shot: Your child still has an appointment but will only receive a flu shot. You can reschedule the booster once we let you know that we have received our booster supply.
  • Children 6 months through 4 years of age remain ineligible for any booster at this time.

Please refrain from calling about vaccine supply so that patients with acute medical concerns may more easily reach their care teams. We are actively pursuing our delivery but do not know when we will receive it.

Once we receive our supply for this age group, our online vaccine scheduling platform is the most convenient way to book an appointment and is available 24/7. We also have a vaccine scheduling line at 207-523-3919. Its operating hours are 7:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Thank you very much for your patience as our teams work through the rollout of these updated vaccines. 

Stay safe and well.

The InterMed Care Team