Tompkins County Whole Health (TCWH) is sharing with the community that the FDA has recently approved updated COVID-19 Vaccines for the respiratory illness season (approximately September 2024 – May 2025). The vaccines are now available, with pharmacies acting as the primary provider of the vaccine. The Moderna, Pfizer-BioNTech, and Novavax vaccines offer updated protection against the currently circulating variants of the COVID-19 virus.
Everyone 6 months of age and older is eligible to receive the updated vaccine, as long as it has been at least 2 months since their last COVID-19 vaccination. If you have not yet received a COVID-19 vaccine, now is the time to do so.
Contact your primary care provider or schedule with a local pharmacy to receive your vaccine. You can also use the Vaccine Finder to find a location near you. If you need assistance in scheduling an appointment, dial 211 (or toll-free at 877-211-8667) to speak with the 211 Tompkins/Cortland helpline.
Those eligible for vaccination through the NYS Vaccines for Children/Vaccines for Adult Programs can call our office at 607-274-6604 to schedule an appointment at our on-site vaccination clinics. A list of eligibility requirements can be found on our website.
Dr. William Klepack, TCWH Medical Director stated, “It is very important to stay up to date with COVID vaccines. They continue to prevent severe illness and hospitalization. We still have too many people dying of COVID who might have been helped by being vaccinated with the latest vaccine. In addition, those who come down with COVID are suffering a week or more of a miserable illness that often takes them out of work for multiple days.”
Dr. Klepack continued, “Significantly, catching COVID-19 also puts one at risk of long-term COVID, which is afflicting millions of Americans with brain fog, fatigue, cough, shortness of breath, and other lingering symptoms. The lesson here is that it is not good to catch COVID-19. Being up to date with your vaccine is an important preventative strategy and continuing to use masks and avoid high risk situations is advisable, especially for those more vulnerable to severe illness. We can be grateful the vaccine is available and is updated annually to keep up with the ever-changing virus. Now is the time to get your vaccine.”
TCWH continues to monitor available data to provide weekly updates on COVID-19's prevalence in Tompkins County. Visit our data dashboard to view Weekly New Positive Cases (total PCR and Antigen tests, as reported to the New York State Department of Health).