SAN ANTONIO – A new COVID-19 vaccine is rolling out to pharmacies and health clinics amid a rise in cases nationwide.
San Antonio Metro Health reported 2,045 new cases this week. However, that number dropped from 2,656 the previous week.
The federal government approved the new vaccine on Monday and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued recommendations for who should get them and when.
Dr. Jason Bowling, University Health dir. of hospital epidemiology, explained why this is a new vaccine and not just a new booster.
“It has a new variant strain in the vaccine itself, so it does not contain the original strain like the prior boosters and vaccines did. It will not just be boosting something that people have already received,” said Bowling.
The new vaccine will essentially target the variant that’s currently circulating.
“It is one strain versus the last one that we have, which was two strains,” said Bowling. “The idea is to kind of have a newer vaccine strain to provide better protection.”
BELOW: Watch a Q&A of Dr. Jason Bowling answering the latest questions about the new COVID-19 vaccine
Federal health officials want to simplify the COVID-19 vaccine schedule, making it as normal as getting an annual flu shot. The CDC recommends all Americans six months and older get the new dose.
“They’re trying to reset the strategy, they want to improve uptake and they want people to be protected,” said Bowling. “We want everybody to get the dose of COVID vaccine, so they’re up to speed for this upcoming respiratory virus season.”
Bowling added that federal testing of the new vaccine has shown no new side effects.
“It’s really built in the same platform, so really no new side effects have been noted so far,” said Bowling. “It is an additional layer of protection, so it protects against more severe outcomes. It reduces your risk of going to the hospital or dying from COVID-19. It can reduce your risk of getting long COVID, which is another concern because you can get long COVID even without a severe case of COVID-19. That’s another important reason for people, even young, healthy people, to get this vaccine.”
KSAT requested statements from local pharmacies on when the new vaccine would become available.
A spokesperson for CVS said pharmacy locations are expected to begin receiving supply of the new vaccines as early as Wednesday and continue to receive inventory on a rolling basis throughout the week. All CVS Pharmacy locations are expected to have the vaccination in stock by early next week.
A spokesperson for H-E-B said the company expected their stores to have the updated COVID-19 vaccine available by this weekend or early next week.
Walmart will administer the new shot once supplies are available, a spokesperson said. The company anticipated having it in pharmacies within the next week.
San Antonio Metro Health stated it will offer the most updated COVID-19 vaccines as soon as they become available and will continue to work with community agencies to host pop-up vaccine clinics weekly.