Boone County health department offering Novavax for people 12 and older

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Columbia/Boone County Department of Public Health and Human Services is now offering the Novavax COVID-19 vaccine to people 12 and older.

The vaccine had been authorized for people age 18 and older until earlier this month, when the FDA gave the green light for its use in younger people.

The department on Wednesday shared a link to an online signup page, saying in a news release that it "will attempt to schedule interested residents in groups" for the new vaccine because the supply is limited. Novavax is available to people who haven't had any COVID-19 shots -- it can't be used as a booster for other COVID-19 shots.

Novavax is a protein vaccine -- a long-used method -- instead of an mRNA vaccine like those made by Pfizer and Moderna.

The FDA on Thursday also said it had authorized boosters specific to the now-dominant omicron subvariants from Pfizer and Moderna.