COVID-19 Booster Shots: Where To Find Them In And Near Livingston

LIVINGSTON, NJ — Booster shots, available at clinics and pharmacies in the area, are the best defense against COVID-19 illnesses as the omicron variant of the coronavirus spreads across the country, according to health officials.

Medical professionals say that breakthrough COVID-19 cases caused by the new omicron variant — infections among the vaccinated — are less common among people who have received their third vaccination shots, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Boosters are given months after someone has received their original vaccination.

Everyone 5 years or older is currently eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine in New Jersey. Everyone 16 and older is eligible for a booster shot — the shots given after a person is fully vaccinated — if it has been at least two months since their one-dose Johnson & Johnson shot or at least six months after completing their two-dose Pfizer or Moderna vaccine series. See the latest state eligibility
guidelines here.

The omicron variant, first reported in South Africa on Nov. 24, has been detected in all but a handful of states.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said Friday the Pfizer and Moderna booster shots work well against the omicron variant.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the omicron variant is likely to become the dominant coronavirus strain in the coming weeks. It currently represents 3 percent of new infections.

Public health officials are concerned that vaccination rates — currently 61 percent of eligible Americans are fully vaccinated, and only 28 percent have gotten booster shots — are insufficient to fend off a fifth wave of the coronavirus. COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are increasing, with about 120,000 new cases and 1,200 deaths reported each day, mainly from the delta variant.

To get a booster shot in your Essex County town, you can check not only chains like CVS and Walgreen's, but don't be surprised if your local neighborhood pharmacy has the booster with less wait time.

You can also check if your town is offering clinics. Countywide, Essex County currently operates coronavirus vaccine and testing sites in Livingston, Newark, and West Orange. They offer appointments to anyone who lives, works, or attends school in the county. Learn more or register for a vaccination/test here.

Residents can make appointments at www.EssexCOVID.org or by calling 973-877-8456.

New Jersey has cleared the way for many other vaccination sites across the state, including Federally Qualified Health Centers, supermarkets, and doctor's offices. Some are accepting
appointments or have residency requirements, but others do not. People can visit COVIDvaccine.nj.gov to preregister.

New Jersey has also launched a "vaccine appointment finder," which can be seen here.

The CDC says Pfizer and Moderna booster shots

both provide increased protection against COVID-19 and helped prevent severe symptoms in breakthrough cases.

In America, more than, 806,000 people have died of COVID since the start of the pandemic.

The daily death rate is highest right now in these states.

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