By BRENT MARTIN
St. Joseph Post
Mosaic Life Care will reopen its Community Vaccine Site at East Hills Mall to give the booster shot to those who earlier received the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine.
Mosaic Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Davin Turner, says this booster shot provides extra protection against the coronavirus.
“For those that have been vaccinated, this third shot will increase the immune response their body has so that if they come in contact with COVID-19 it will even further decrease the possibility that they would contract it, but even better than that, if they do contract it, it decreases whether or not they will have a bad outcome or become severely ill,” Turner tells reporters during a news briefing at the Mosaic Life Care St. Joseph hospital.
Mosaic will begin providing the booster shot at the old Gordman’s store location, beginning at 8:30am Friday, the 15th. It is only for those who received the Pfizer vaccine and are in the COVID high-risk categories or work in high-risk occupations.
Mosaic will hold a booster event at Albany High School in partnership with Tri County Public Health October 18th. Mosaic plans a community booster event November 9th in Maryville at the Hughes Fieldhouse on the Northwest Missouri State University campus. Mosaic is also working with Maryville and Albany officials on additional community booster events.
Turner recommends the booster for those 65 and older or those who have compromised immune systems.
“This is your best protection against one, getting it, but even if you get it, against getting severely ill and dying from this disease,” according to Turner.
The booster is only available for those who received the Pfizer vaccine and are in those high-risk categories. Boosters for the Moderna as well as the Johnson and Johnson COVID-19 vaccines are pending approval.
Though the coronavirus vaccines have proven effective, Turner still recommends the extra protection of the booster shot.
“Yes, I do recommend the booster for those that are at high risk for severe illness from this,” Turner says, adding those who have contracted COVID even after being vaccinated typically are 65-years-old or older.
Turner says few who are fully vaccinated contract COVID-19, but if they do, the booster will help their bodies fight off the disease.
“So, we really want those folks to get it, because those are the ones at the highest risk of becoming more ill with this and you want them to have this vaccine so they have the best chance of surviving this illness,” Turner says.