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A busy vaccination season lies ahead for UVA Health. Planning is underway for the administration of flu, Monkeypox, and the new COVID booster shots to team members, patients, and our community. Here is a quick overview of what is planned:

Flu Vaccinations | This year’s flu shot program will encompass numerous groups, including:

• Team members | Starts on Sept. 26 with Dec. 2 as the compliance deadline. Employee Health and UVA-WorkMed are leading this annual push which aims to have all team members vaccinated unless they have been granted an exemption. Workplace options will include work group to-go kits, special walk-in vaccination clinics, and appointments at Employee Health and UVA-WorkMed. Details: Influenza Vaccine 2022 - 2023 Season — UVA Health System (virginia.edu)
• Outpatients | Starts Sept. 20. Flu shots will be provided by appointment or during scheduled appointments.
• Inpatients | Starts Sept. 27.
• Public | Starts Sept. 20 in our retail pharmacies.
• Community groups | To be announced. Planning is underway.

Monkeypox Vaccinations | Supplies of the Jynneos vaccine are limited, and UVA Health has yet to learn how many doses we will receive through the Virginia Department of Health. Currently, a small number of team members in the medical lab have been identified as vaccine recipients due to their potential exposure while handling specimens. Plans for offering this vaccine to patients and other members of the community will be communicated soon. Jynneos monkeypox vaccination is also available now at the Blue Ridge Health District (BRHD) for residents who have been exposed to monkeypox or are at high risk of being exposed to it. A monkeypox vaccine interest survey is available on BRHD website.

Updated COVID Booster Shots | The Federal Drug Administration has granted Emergency Use Authorizations to the SARS-CoV2 bivalent — or updated — booster vaccines developed by Pfizer and Moderna. An advisory group of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will meet Sept. 1 to decide who will be eligible to receive the boosters and when. Manufacturers expect to begin shipments in mid-September. UVA Health will offer updated boosters to team members and patients as soon as possible. Further information will be coming soon. 

Updated boosters include mRNA components designed to offer broad protection against the original strain of COVID-19 and the omicron variants BA.4 and BA.5. At this time, receipt of boosters will be an option, not a requirement, for team members.