Dr. Ed discusses new CDC recommended COVID-19 booster

EAST TEXAS (KLTV/KTRE) - The CDC this week approved the use of a new COVID-19 booster that is recommended for all Americans aged six months and older. It is designed to target specific variants that are spreading across the country, leading to an increase in cases.

“These two new vaccines that are coming out are called monovalent, so they don’t cover all the old variants that we saw before Omicron,” said Dr. Ed Dominguez, KLTV and KTRE’s med team doctor. “They’re only going to cover omicron and to some degree the new variants that are circulating.”

Dominguez says that approximately one in five COVID tests in the state of Texas are currently coming back positive. The shot is recommended for high-risk groups, including the elderly and those with heart disease. Dominguez says this is the first time the CDC has not prioritized groups in vaccine distribution.

“Pretty much anybody six months of age or older is eligible for these vaccines, but unlike prior rollouts, they are not going to set up tiers, “said Dominguez. “Where, well we will only vaccinate the high-risk people first and then the low-risk people and then everybody else, they are allowing anybody who wants to get it to receive that vaccine.”

Dominguez expects full-scale rollout of the new boosters next week, but some pharmacies may receive shipments this week.

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