The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Rochelle P. Walensky, overruled a recommendation by an agency advisory panel that felt booster shots of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid vaccine should not be approved yet for frontline workers. The panel did endorse a third dose of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine for certain at-risk groups.
CDC recommends:
- people 65 years and older and residents in long-term care settings should receive a booster shot of Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine at least 6 months after their Pfizer-BioNTech primary series,
- people aged 50–64 years with underlying medical conditions should receive a booster shot of Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine at least 6 months after their Pfizer-BioNTech primary series,
- people aged 18–49 years with underlying medical conditions may receive a booster shot of Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine at least 6 months after their Pfizer-BioNTech primary series, based on their individual benefits and risks, and
- people aged 18-64 years who are at increased risk for COVID-19 exposure and transmission because of occupational or institutional setting may receive a booster shot of Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine at least 6 months after their Pfizer-BioNTech primary series, based on their individual benefits and risks.
Walgreens is already offering appointments for the booster shotTo get the booster, you must have completed the two-dose Pfizer series. People who received Moderna or Johnson & Johnson’s vaccines are not eligible.
Appointments for the COVID-19 booster can be made online through Walgreens.com/ScheduleVaccine, by calling 800-WALGREENS or your local Walgreens.