Statewide Response Updates

Note to subscribers:

In coordination with the end of the COVID-19 emergency proclamations and state of emergency on Oct. 31, the Washington State Department of Health (DOH) is discontinuing the weekly COVID-19 Bulletin. Today's edition will be the final one published.

You can visit doh.wa.gov for information about COVID-19 and other public health topics. If you have questions, please contact DOH-PIO@doh.wa.gov.

COVID Vaccine Program Update

COVID-19 vaccine providers are now able to offer omicron variant-targeted bivalent booster doses of COVID-19 vaccines to children ages 6 months and older. This follows the guidance and recommendations released last week from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The recommendations for children ages 6 months to 5 years are more detailed and may feel less straightforward than the omicron-targeting recommendations for other age groups, so please read the details carefully to ensure you are correctly administering COVID-19 vaccine under the new guidance.

The newly released recommendations include:

  • Children 6 months through 5 years of age who received the original (monovalent) two-dose Moderna COVID-19 vaccine series are now eligible to receive a booster of the updated (bivalent) Moderna COVID-19 vaccine two months after their last dose.

  • Children 6 months through 4 years of age who have not started or completed their three-dose Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine series will now receive the updated (bivalent) Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine as the third dose following two doses of the original (monovalent) Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine.

  • Children 6 months through 4 years of age who have already completed their three-dose primary series with the original (monovalent) Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine are not eligible for an updated (bivalent) booster dose at this time.  

  • Make sure that correct doses of the correct vaccine brands are administered by checking cap color and vaccination records carefully.

Here’s what else you should know:

  • With today’s action, the monovalent Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine is no longer authorized for use as the third dose of the three-dose primary series in children 6 months through 4 years of age.

  • Do not get rid of monovalent stock as that vaccine is still needed for primary series doses.

  • The updated bivalent vaccine provides better protection against COVID-19 caused by the omicron variant.

  • The bivalent vaccines, also known as omicron boosters, contain two strains: one component of the original strain of SARS-CoV-2 and a second component from the BA.4 and BA.5 lineages of the omicron variant. The monovalent COVID-19 vaccines previously administered since December 2020 only contain the original strain.

  • The benefits of vaccinating children far outweigh the risks. The potential for a serious side effect or reaction to the vaccine is far less than the risk of serious outcomes or death from COVID-19 disease.

  • Children can also get long COVID or Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C) from mild or asymptomatic disease. We can protect children from these serious outcomes by protecting them with COVID-19 vaccination and a booster.

  • You can give any COVID-19 vaccine at the same time as most vaccines, such as a flu shot or other recommended childhood vaccines.

  • Variations and/or updates to an already tested and authorized vaccine can be authorized by the FDA similar to how they approve updated flu vaccines every year.

  • Find more information about providing COVID-19 vaccine and vaccinating youth, at doh.wa.gov/Covid19VaccineProvider.

As we approach the two-year anniversary of COVID-19 vaccines being available, thank you for everything you’ve done to protect people in Washington from this serious and deadly disease. Your efforts have saved lives and kept families healthy.