The Maui News

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted emergency use authorization for the COVID-19 booster by Novavax, the state Department of Health announced Wednesday afternoon.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and state Health Department are also allowing use of the booster.

Novavax monovalent COVID-19 boosters are recommended for adults 18 and older for whom a bivalent booster by Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna is not clinically appropriate and adults who would otherwise not get a COVID-19 booster.

Adults who completed their primary series of Novavax, Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna or Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccines at least six months ago can receive a Novavax booster if they have not already received a different booster by another manufacturer, according to the news release.

“We encourage people to get the new bivalent boosters from Pfizer or Moderna because those are the only boosters specially designed to protect against Omicron subvariants. But Novavax is an option for those who can’t get a Pfizer or Moderna booster,” said state Health Director Dr. Elizabeth Char.

To date, the Health Department reports that 179 doses of Novavax COVID-19 vaccines have been administered statewide as part of primary vaccine series.

Find Novavax vaccines and boosters on the vaccine page at hawaiicovid19.com.