COVID Vaccine Boosters Now Offered To All Adults In Arlington

ARLINGTON, VA — COVID-19 vaccine providers in the Arlington Health District are now offering booster shots to all adults.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention expanded booster eligibility to everyone 18 and older for the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines. A booster dose or Pfizer or Moderna should be at least six months after the second dose. All booster doses are free.

Previously, Pfizer and Moderna boosters were recommended for anyone 65 and older, adults living in long-term care facilities, adults with underlying health conditions, or adults at higher risk for COVID-19 exposure due to their work setting.

Booster doses of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine were already recommended for all adults at least two months after the initial dose.

Boosters are not currently recommended for anyone under 18. Children ages 5 and up are eligible for the two-dose Pfizer vaccine. The Moderna and J&J vaccines are limited to adults 18 and older.

The CDC recommended the boosters after scientific evaluation of safety data, vaccine effectiveness and the current state of the pandemic.

"Booster shots have demonstrated the ability to safely increase people’s protection against infection and severe outcomes and are an important public health tool to strengthen our defenses against the virus as we enter the winter holidays," stated CDC Director Rochelle Walensky. "Based on the compelling evidence, all adults over 18 should now have equitable access to a COVID-19 booster dose."

In the Arlington Health District, anyone 5 and older can find available vaccine appointments near their location at www.vaccines.gov. According to VDH data, 17.7 percent of the adult population in Arlington County has a booster dose.

Arlington County is offering booster doses by appointment only at its two clinics:

• Arlington Mill Community Center (909 S Dinwiddie St.)
  • Monday–Friday, 11 a.m.–7 p.m.
  • Saturday–Sunday, 9 a.m.–5 p.m.
  • CLOSED Nov. 25–28
• Walter Reed Community Center (2909 16th St S.)
  • Monday–Friday, 11 a.m.–7 p.m.
  • Saturday–Sunday, 9 a.m.–5 p.m.
  • CLOSED for Thanksgiving Nov. 25–26
  • Saturday, Nov. 27 and Sunday, Nov. 28 (9 a.m.–5 p.m.) Note: These clinics are exclusively for 5–11-year-old 2nd dose appointments; no walk-ins are accepted.

To receive a booster dose of the Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccines, residents can schedule an appointment with Arlington County Public Health or search for locations via vaccines.com.