The Bay Area is facing a COVID vaccine shortage amid a summer surge in cases. One major health care provider and two retail pharmacies say the shortage stems from a limited supply.
Rite Aid told NBC Bay Area its supply of the COVID vaccine is limited because the current doses are expiring and it is waiting for the newly formulated vaccines for 2024-25 to arrive. Those are expected by sometime in September.
CVS Pharmacy similarly says many of its locations still have doses but can’t restock because they are awaiting new doses to ship.
Kaiser Permanente also pointed to a depleted supply and said the vaccine won't be available to some age groups until the new doses arrive.
"Due to limited supply of the 2023-24 COVID-19 vaccines, Kaiser Permanente will not be routinely providing COVID-19 vaccination for some or all age groups for the rest of the summer, depending on service area," the health care provider said in a statement. "Vaccination for all recommended age groups will resume when the 2024-25 COVID-19 vaccines are available in September. These new formulations are expected to provide additional protection against the currently circulating strains of the COVID-19 virus."
Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, infectious disease specialist at UCSF, told NBC Bay Area the new subvariant, kp.3.1.1, came out of the blue. He said it's not more deadly than other variants, but it's definitely more transmissible.
"Last year, a lot of people got vaccinated in general in the community, including those over 65," he said. "This past year, not a lot of people got immunized. So when the summer increase in cases came like now, a lot of people are scrambling to get vaccinated."
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Those who are 65 or older or immunocompromised should get the new vaccine, Chin-Hong says, but they should wait until October so the antibodies peak during winter when there will most likely be another COVID uptick.
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