XBB variant-focused COVID-19 vaccine available to high-risk individuals starting Oct. 3

October 2, 2023

Beginning Tuesday, Oct. 3, Niagara Region Public Health will offer the recently approved Spikevax (Moderna) XBB COVID-19 vaccine at its clinics. This updated vaccine offers better protection from the more recent variants of COVID-19 circulating in our community.

Initially, vaccine appointments will be available to healthcare providers and high-risk individuals, including:

Individuals over the age of 65
Residents and staff of congregate living settings
All children six months to four years old
Pregnant individuals
First Nation, Inuit or Métis individuals and their household members
Everyone six months of age and older with underlying health conditions

In order to make sure our most vulnerable residents receive the updated vaccine as quickly and effectively as possible, Public Health will also be supporting the vaccination of long-term care and retirement home residents over the coming weeks. Following vaccination of high-risk individuals, vaccine will be available to the rest of the population as vaccine supply permits.

An XBB COVID-19 dose is recommended for everyone six months of age and older as long as it has been at least six months since they were last vaccinated or infected with COVID-19.

Residents can find Public Health’s vaccine clinic schedule on Niagara Region’s website, and can book an appointment through the Province’s COVID-19 Vaccine portal. A limited number of appointments will be available from Oct. 3 -14, and more appointments will be added later this month.

In addition to the Spikevax vaccine, on Sept. 28, Health Canada authorized the use of the Pfizer-BioNTech Comirnaty XBB-focused vaccine, however details of when Niagara will receive supply have not yet been shared by the Province.

Media contact

Andrew Korchok
Niagara Region
905-329-1642 (media only)
andrew.korchok@niagararegion.ca