COVID-19 and Flu Vaccine Information

Covid-19 Moderna Spike Vax XBB1.5 vaccinations are now available.

Call our clinic on 07 3448 0400

Vaccine information for patients is available from the Australian Government website.

ATAGI advice on COVID-19 vaccine

The Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI) recommends that the COVID-19 vaccine by Pfizer (Comirnaty) is preferred in adults aged under 50 years.

COVID-19 vaccination is recommended for all people aged 5 years or older to protect against COVID-19. For most people, a primary vaccination course consists of 2 doses.

A third primary dose is recommended for people aged 5 years or older with severe immunocompromise. See considerations for special populations: people who are immunocompromised.

A single booster dose is recommended for people aged 16 years or older, 3 months after the primary course. An additional booster dose is recommended for people at risk of severe COVID-19, 4 months after the first booster. See booster dose recommendations. 

In Australia, vaccination is strongly recommended for the following groups:

• people with occupational risk of exposure to SARS-CoV-2, such as frontline healthcare workers, quarantine and border workers, aged care and disability care staff, and critical and high-risk workers
• residents of aged care and disability care facilities
• older adults
• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people
• people with underlying medical conditions that increase their risk of severe COVID-19
• pregnant women

Primary course: vaccine preference recommendations

Adults aged under 60 years

Pfizer, Moderna, or Novavax COVID-19 vaccines are preferred over AstraZeneca for people aged under 60 years. This is based on the higher risk and observed severity of thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome (TTS) after receiving AstraZeneca vaccine in people aged under 60 years compared with people aged 60 years or older. People aged 60 years or older are also at higher risk of severe illness from COVID-19, meaning the benefits of vaccination outweigh the very small risk of TTS.

AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine can be used in adults aged under 60 years if the person has made an informed decision based on an understanding of the risks and benefits.¹

For more information on third primary doses for severely immunocompromised individuals see: Considerations for special populations – people who are immunocompromised.

Adults aged 60 years or older

There is no brand preference for people aged 60 years and older.

People aged 60 years and older receive greater benefit from vaccination than young people. This is because the risk of severe disease from COVID-19 increases with age. The benefit of vaccination with AstraZeneca in preventing COVID-19 outweighs the risk of TTS in people aged 60 years and older.

For information on third primary doses for severely immunocompromised individuals see: Considerations for special populations – people who are immunocompromised.

Pregnant women

mRNA COVID-19 vaccines (Pfizer or Moderna) are the recommended vaccines in pregnancy. There are substantial data on their safe use in pregnancy.

Novavax COVID-19 vaccine can also be used in pregnancy. There is no immunogenicity or safety data but there are no theoretical safety concerns.

AstraZeneca is not preferred in pregnancy. Pregnant women who have already received a first dose of AstraZeneca can receive either an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine, AstraZeneca, or Novavax for their second dose.

Booster dose recommendations 

A single COVID-19 vaccine booster dose is recommended for people aged 16 years and older who completed their primary course 3 or more months ago.

An additional booster dose (also known as a winter dose) is recommended for people in the following groups, from 4 months after the first booster dose: 

• people 65 years or older 
• residents of an aged care or disability care facility 
• people who are severely immunocompromised
• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples aged 50 years and older. 

For people aged 16 to 17 years, Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine is the only vaccine registered for use as a booster.

For people aged 18 years and older, Pfizer or Moderna COVID-19 vaccines are the preferred vaccines for this booster dose, regardless of which vaccine was used for the primary course.