Mayo Clinic, Gundersen to Administer COVID-19 Booster Injections

LA CROSSE (WKBT) – The Mayo Clinic Health System and Gundersen Health System have both started giving COVID-19 vaccine boosters to eligible patients.

The Mayo Clinic said it is giving a third dose of the Pfizer or Moderna mRNA vaccines to people with moderate or severe immunosuppression 12 years of age or older.

“As a community, we stand together and will continue to fight COVID-19 as we have done so far,” said Dr. Paul Molling, administrator and family physician, Mayo Clinic Health System in Onalaska. “Let’s all do what we can to protect each other. If you have not received an initial COVID-19 vaccination or if one of those recommended to receive your 3rd COVID vaccination, please do so. Take the necessary precautions available. We want everyone to be healthy, we sympathize with those who might be confused or scared by this situation. We in the health field thank you for keeping us and our community healthy by being vaccinated. “

Eligible individuals will receive a booster from the same manufacturer as their initial doses. Neither Gundersen nor the Mayo Clinic offer boosters of Johnson & Johnson’s single-dose vaccine.

Eligible individuals can identify themselves as immunocompromised and must meet one of these recall requirements:

• Receiving cancer treatment for tumors or cancer of the blood
• Has received an organ transplant and is taking medicine to suppress the immune system
• Have had a stem cell transplant within the past two years or are taking medicines to suppress the immune system
• Moderate or severe primary immune deficiency (such as DiGeorge syndrome, Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome)
• Advanced or untreated HIV infection
• Active treatment with high dose corticosteroids or other medicines which may suppress your immune response

See the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention list of conditions here.

“The reason people who are immunocompromised will need an additional vaccine is because their immune systems don’t respond as well to the initial doses of the vaccine and their response wanes over time,” says Dr. Melanie. Swift, Co-Chair. of the Mayo Clinic COVID-19 Vaccine Allocation and Distribution Working Group. “People with weakened immune systems have a harder time fighting infection than a healthy person. “

Mayo Clinic health system patients eligible for additional doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been identified and will be contacted through Online Patient Services, which includes their Mayo Clinic portal app, or by mail to take appointment. Patients who do not have access to online patient services can call 608-392-7400 to schedule an additional dose.

Mayo Clinic Health System continues to encourage all eligible people to be vaccinated against COVID-19 wherever it is available. Visit https://www.vaccins.gov/ website for a complete list of local vaccinators.

Anyone 12 years of age or older, patient or non-patient, can get the free and safe COVID-19 booster in Gundersen. Adult Gundersen patients can come in, book an appointment through MyChart, or call the appointment line at (608) 775-6829. Non-adult patients can attend or call the scheduling line at (608) 775-6829, option 2, for an appointment for a vaccine. Patients under the age of 18 need the consent of a parent or guardian in person or by calling the Gundersen Planning Line at (608) 775-6829.

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