PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Philadelphia began administering federally approved Pfizer COVID-19 booster shots on Saturday. The vaccine is readily available but demand for the third dose doesn't seem to be as robust as expected just yet.
Part of the reason appears to be confusion about eligibility.
"In the beginning, it was people coming in left and right," said Dr. Marcus Patterson, owner of Solace Pharmacy in the Fairmount area of Philadelphia.
Patterson said appointments for the newly recommended Pfizer booster were not as sought after as the initial vaccine when it first became available. He has, however, gotten a lot of people calling in to ask him questions about it.
"The problem, I think, is people understanding who is eligible, are they eligible, when can they get it, and where can they get it," he said. "I got a few messages from teachers asking if they are eligible and they are eligible."
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Solace Pharmacy was among a handful of vaccine providers KYW Newsradio contacted in Philadelphia to see whether people were enthusiastically lining up to get the Pfizer booster. None of them reported high immediate demand for it. In fact, Patterson said he was seeing more people come in for first and second shots than for the third.
"They're doing it either because of work or because they want to eat at a restaurant," he said. "You'll be surprised that that's the motivator."
Patterson said the most common question he's been getting has to do with that 18-64 age group whose jobs put them at risk for COVID-19. However, he said he isn't asking for any proof of eligibility for a third shot aside from making sure they received a second dose of the Pfizer vaccine at least six months prior.
"Because chances are, if you think you need it, you probably do," he said. "If you’re even taking public transportation constantly, that’s a high risk situation. If they feel like they’re in a high risk and they have a small child who cannot be vaccinated, I’m going to give them the shot."
Patterson said the third shot is safe, and reminds people the Pfizer vaccine is FDA-approved. A worst-case scenario for someone who gets it but doesn't need it, he said, is that it won't have any effect.
"I don't think it's a bad idea to get the third dose," he said. "I do err on the side of getting the third dose as opposed to not receiving the third dose if you think you need it."
