Sparrow Health System has received a large shipment of the new Pfizer COVID bivalent vaccine booster from the federal government and the shots will be available this week at our Sparrow Medical Group Primary Care practices.
The shipment comes as COVID admissions to Sparrow hospitals are on the rise. The seven-day rolling average COVID admissions is up 16 percent from last week. However, the average number of new cases, along with case positivity rates, are down, highlighting the need for the safe and effective vaccine.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is recommending updated COVID boosters [npr.org] for people ages 12 and older. The newly authorized shot is a reformulated version of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine. The bivalent booster targets both the original strain of the coronavirus and the two omicron subvariants that are causing most of the current infections.
Sparrow has plenty of the newly generated doses in stock. Patients should schedule a vaccine appointment with their Sparrow SMG practice or get it during a regularly scheduled office visit. As with previous COVID-19 boosters, co-administration of the COVID-19 bivalent booster with other vaccines, such as flu, is strongly encouraged at the same time for eligible patients.
With our highly skilled physicians and caregivers, Sparrow is proud to bring leading-edge COVID care to Mid-Michigan. To learn more about COVID vaccinations, being tested for the virus, or utilizing new treatment options, visit Sparrow.org/CovidCare [sparrow.org].
