St. Louis County has begun to distribute COVID-19 vaccine boosters that target the dominant Omicron variants. 

St. Louis County Executive Sam Page said in a briefing Sept. 14 the county had received a shipment of boosters from the state and that people could begin to make appointments to receive their booster shot with the county health department. 

Appointments are available 1 to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday at the South County Health Center, 4580 S. Lindbergh Blvd. 

Appointments are also available at the John C. Murphy Health Center, 6121 N. Hanley Road, in Berkeley. 

Page said the county was requesting residents make appointments since it is anticipating widespread interest in a booster. 

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control approved the updated COVID-19 boosters at the end of August. 

The boosters, known as bivalent vaccines, are specifically designed to fight the more transmissible BA.4 and BA.5 Omicron variants, according to the CDC. 

There are two bivalent boosters available: the Pfizer booster, which is approved for ages 12 and older, and Moderna’s, which is approved for those 18 and older. Both are available at the county’s vaccination centers. 

Page said that the original booster shot will still be offered for those under the approved ages for either bivalent boosters. 

To get a booster, one must have gotten the first initial dose of the COVID vaccine, either the two-dose Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, or the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Appointments are not needed to get an initial vaccine dose, only for the booster shot. 

“COVID is not in the news as much as it was in the better part of the past two years when it held a tight grip on our community and sent thousands to the hospital,” Page said. “Thankfully we now have  vaccines … but it’s still very present in our community and people are still getting sick and staying home.” 

The county is averaging over 200 new cases a day, according to data from St. Louis County, which is considered “high” transmission under updated CDC metrics.