Nevadans in ‘every occupation’ may qualify for booster

A top Nevada vaccination official on Thursday said that people in “every occupation” are eligible for an extra shot of the Pfizer vaccine if they think their job puts them at increased risk for COVID-19.

The state is encouraging those who have already received two doses of the Pfizer vaccine “to assess their own risk in their occupation” to determine if they might need a booster shot, said Karissa Loper, a health bureau chief with the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services.

“Every occupation is covered and may seek out that vaccine booster,” Loper said.

During a media briefing, state officials referenced their vaccine rollout playbook, a document listing hundreds of jobs that make up Nevada’s front-line essential workforce, as a guide for determining eligibility.

As a practical matter, occupational eligibility is “based on their own personal assessment of their risk of exposure to COVID-19 in their workplace setting,” Loper said at the state’s weekly coronavirus briefing, which going forward will be held every other week.

Loper’s comments come a week after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention approved Pfizer booster shots for certain populations who have already gotten a double dose. The federal agency recommended a booster for those 65 and older as well as for those 50 to 64 with underlying health conditions.

The CDC also said that those 18 and older with underlying conditions and in certain jobs, such as health care workers and teachers, may also get a booster based on an assessment of personal risk. The agency stopped short of recommending boosters for these groups.

In offering booster shots to all occupations, Nevada is taking a broad interpretation of the CDC’s guidance, which on Monday listed eight occupational groups as eligible for booster shots. It may also be a practical approach, in that across the country, people are being asked only to self-attest to their eligibility based on job or health status and not to document it.

Early in the vaccination rollout, the vaccine playbook was used to determine who could be at the front of the line for getting a dose when supplies were scarce. Supply is no longer an issue, even with the door thrown wide open to all occupations for boosters.

“There is ample supply of the Pfizer vaccine across the state, both in your urban settings and rurals,” Loper said.

The state has administered more than 29,000 third doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines since mid-August, when people with severely or moderately weakened immune systems due to an organ transplant or other serious medical condition were authorized to get an extra dose, according to information from the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services. Close to half, or almost 14,000 doses, were administered in the past 10 days.

Contact Mary Hynes at mhynes@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0336. Follow @MaryHynes1 on Twitter.