As Covid case numbers rise in New South Wales and Victoria, people across Australia are being urged to get a vaccine booster dose as soon as they are eligible.
Health professionals have warned of problems caused by an increased demand for booster shots, after the emergence of the Omicron variant and a shortening of the interval between vaccine doses.
Both GPs and pharmacist have spoken of issues with the booster rollout, from running out of vaccine to staff shortages.
So where can you get a booster shot and how soon?
Are you eligible?
The first thing to do is check whether you’re eligible by looking at the date of your second dose.
People 18 years and older who had their second dose of any Covid-19 vaccine five months or more ago are eligible to get a booster of either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines, even if they had AstraZeneca as their first vaccine.
People who had AstraZeneca as their first two doses can have it as their third if they so choose.
The only exclusion on booster doses is those who are immunocompromised and have already had a third dose.
Where can I get it?
More than 8,500 GPs, community pharmacies, Aboriginal community controlled health organisations, commonwealth and state government clinics are able to offer either the Moderna or Pfizer boosters.
More than 670,000 booster shots have already been administered in Australia.
The federal health department’s website will let you plug in your postcode and the vaccine type you are after to find the clinics near you. However it has limited information on what availability those clinics have.
Alternatively, click below for clinic locations in your state or territory:
Many of these places have walk-in appointments, especially pharmacies, so you will not need to book, but it is worth calling ahead in advance to see if they have stock.
Boosters remain free of charge.
Can I book an appointment?
If you prefer to book ahead, or if you’re not quite at the five month mark, you can book through those sites.
The best site around for finding Covid-19 vaccine appointments is one developed unofficially by Sydney-based developer Ken Tsang called Covid-19 Near Me. Using data from what he says is a “range of sources”, the website points out on maps where you can find Covid-19 vaccines, and whether those places have any stock.
The site will then direct you to the clinic or medical centre’s booking page to make your booking.
