All Kansas adults can now get COVID booster shots. Here’s how to get one in Wichita
All fully vaccinated Kansans over the age of 18 are now eligible for COVID-19 booster shots, state health officials announced Wednesday.
Before, Kansas followed federal guidelines, that booster shots should be available only to people over 65, with underlying health conditions or at risk because of their jobs or living conditions.
But like governors in several other states, Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly said she didn’t want to wait.
“The COVID-19 vaccine is free, safe, effective, and the best way to keep our communities protected from this virus,” Kelly said in a statement.
“Expanding access to booster shots will help us put an end to this deadly pandemic. Whether you are considering your first shot or signing up for a booster, I urge everyone to get the facts and get vaccinated.”
Kansas follows several other states, red and blue, expanding who is eligible for the booster shot. They include California, Colorado, New Mexico, Arkansas and West Virginia.
Kansans must be at least 18 and have received their full Pfizer or Moderna shots six months earlier or Johnson & Johnson at least two months earlier.
Health officials provided examples of people who might be at higher risk of getting COVID and should especially consider getting the booster: People who work with the public or are living with someone who works with the public; living or working with someone at high risk of severe COVID; living where COVID transmission rates are high; living in a congregate setting, or experiencing social inequity or other risk conditions.
Sedgwick County leads the state with over 84,000 COVID cases. Although daily cases mostly have been dropping since a surge that appears to have peaked in September, the roughly 150 new cases detected each day should meet the criteria of a high transmission area, according to Sedgwick County Health Department director Adrienne Byrne.
Byrne encouraged anyone eligible to get the booster.
“It’s not worth gambling with,” she said. “I know we’re all tired and just OD’d on COVID and want to move on, but it is still very much an issue and that booster and that vaccine is very much important. It can be very much life-saving.”
All Kansas counties are experiencing a high risk of community transmission, state health officials said.
State health officials say the boosters will help reduce the possibility of a winter COVID-19 surge.
Medical experts worry that cases could spike as the season of holiday gatherings arrives and mask mandates are being lifted.
“As we move into the winter months, Kansans will increasingly be indoors, putting themselves at greater risk of contracting the virus,” said Dr. Lee Norman, secretary of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment.
Appointments for a vaccine or booster in Sedgwick County can be done through the county’s website at sedgwickcounty.org/covid-19/vaccine/scheduling. The community vaccine site at 223 S. Main will be closed on Thursday and Friday next week for Thanksgiving, but will reopen Saturday. Walk-ins will be allowed again starting Dec. 1.
If you need to find a vaccine location outside of Sedgwick County, go to Vaccines.gov.
Kelly received a booster shot of Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine last week, days after she held a news conference at a Topeka grocery store with Rep. John Alcala, a Topeka Democrat, who contracted a mild case of COVID-19.
Alcala was vaccinated. Kelly decided not to take a COVID test because she did not have symptoms and was not in close contact with Alcala.
This story was originally published November 17, 2021 at 2:36 PM.