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Last week, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) amended the Emergency Use Authorization to allow a third dose of mRNA COVID-19 vaccine for certain immunocompromised people. We are pleased to announce that Huntsman Cancer Institute is now offering the Pfizer vaccine as a third dose to immunocompromised patients in our outpatient clinics. This vaccine is also available at many community locations. Visit coronavirus.utah.gov.
This third dose needs to be scheduled at least 28 days after receiving the second dose of an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine. Ideally, people should receive the same vaccine brand for their third dose as they did for their first two doses, but this is not required. Currently, people who received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine are not eligible for an additional dose.
Patients are not required to provide proof of eligibility. We recommended patients bring their vaccination card with them for documentation. Receiving a third dose of vaccine is not an emergency or urgent task. Please talk to your care team to learn if a third dose of vaccine is right for you, and if so, what the best timing is for the third dose. Note that blood and marrow (BMT) allogeneic patient require a provider order to receive a third dose of vaccine at Huntsman Cancer Institute. At this time, third dose vaccines are not recommended for people who are not immunocompromised.
We are excited to offer this third dose of vaccine to our immunocompromised patients. As with many things related to COVID-19, this is a very dynamic situation. Huntsman Cancer Institute will continue to adjust as recommendations change.
Resources
- A Message about COVID-19 to Huntsman Cancer Institute Patients
- Coronavirus: What People with Cancer Should Know (National Cancer Institute)
- Coronavirus Vaccines and People with Cancer: A Q&A (National Cancer Institute)
- U of U Statement about the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 Vaccine (U of U Health)
- coronavirus.utah.gov
- healthcare.utah.edu/coronavirus