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The state Department of Health is recommending COVID-19 bivalent booster vaccines for everyone ages 5 and older after federal officials approved emergency use of the shots for a wider swath of the population.
On Wednesday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration gave emergency use authorization to the Pfizer-BioNTech bivalent booster for children ages 5-11 and to the Moderna bivalent booster for children and teens ages 6-17.
Bivalent boosters contain a combination of the original vaccine ingredients and new protection against the latest omicron variants. They are administered as a single booster dose to those who previously completed a primary series of COVID-19 vaccines and to those who have had one or two booster doses.
Bivalent boosters can only be administered if at least two months have passed since a person's most recent vaccination, according to the DOH.
Patients can select a booster from either Pfizer or Moderna regardless of the brand they previously received.
For more information on vaccines in Hawaii, visit hawaiicovid19.com/vaccine/.