With demand for the Omicron-specific COVID-19 booster dose expected to be high, the Middlesex London Health Unit is extending the hours at one of its mass vaccination clinics.
The health unit announced on Monday the Caradoc Community Centre Mass Vaccination Clinic in Mount Brydges will go from being open just three days a week to five. The reason is to help “meet the expected demand” for the Moderna Spikevax bivalent vaccine.
The announcement came on the same day the provincial government began allowing vulnerable Ontarians 18 and older to book appointments to get the adapted version of the original Moderna mRNA vaccine. Priority appointments are currently available for individuals aged 70 plus, residents of long-term care and retirement homes, Elder Care Lodges, First Nation, Inuit, and Métis individuals and their non-Indigenous household members aged 18 and over, pregnant women, and health care workers.
Eligibility for the variant-specific booster dose will be expanded to all other Ontarians 18 and up as of September 26.
Moderna’s bivalent COVID-19 booster, which was approved by Health Canada at the start of the month, offers protection from both the original strain of COVID-19 and the Omicron variant.
“The recommended interval at which a bivalent booster dose can be administered is six months after an individual completed their primary vaccine series or received their most recent booster dose,” the health unit said in a statement. “Individuals who have had COVID-19 or have tested positive on a PCR or rapid-antigen test must wait a minimum of three months before receiving a booster dose of the bivalent vaccine.”
The extended hours of operation will now see the Caradoc Community Centre Mass Vaccination Clinic open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday to Friday. The hours at the Western Fair Agriplex Mass Vaccination Clinic will remain at 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday to Saturday.
Appointments can be booked online at www.covidvaccinelm.ca or by calling 226-289-3560.
The bivalent booster will also be available by appointment through the MLHU community vaccination clinics, the health unit said.
