Local Pharmacies Start Rolling Out COVID-19 Booster Shots
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - It's a rush to feel the pinch of the booster shot. Allegheny Health Network will launch their booster clinics Tuesday, and some local pharmacies tell KDKA they're hiring more staff to keep up with the demand.
KDKA's Meghan Schiller talked with Allegheny General Hospital's Director of Pharmacy about the first full week of booster eligibility.
Dr. Arpit Mehta says AHN already gave out roughly 21,000 booster doses "and now that Moderna and J&J is approved, we're going to start seeing a lot of the folks that have held on, if you will, go and start coming in to get their Moderna and J&J boosters as well."
Dr. Mehta says he doesn't expect a "rush" since there is increased availability across the area. He did point out AHN is administering more booster shots compared to first and second shots.
AHN doctors are encouraging people to schedule their appointments online in advance. The groups of people eligible for boosters include people 65 years or older, people 16-64 with underlying health issues and people at increased risk of contracting COVID due to where they work or live.
Pharmacists ask for people to bring their vaccination cards to prove they've waited at least 6 months from their second dose of either Pfizer or Moderna, or at least 2 months from their single-dose Johnson & Johnson shot.
At Spartan Pharmacy in Brentwood, they're not accepting walk-ins to try to manage the demand. All appointments right now can be made online.
Rite Aid is offering walk-in appointments right now and tells KDKA it is fixing an error on its online scheduling website. Previously, it did not present a drop-down menu option to allow recipients of the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine to schedule a booster dose. Rite Aid tells KDKA that issue will be fixed by the end of the day.
UPMC is in the process of rolling out the expanded booster shots. They say they will let the public know once it is ready for the expanded boosters.
