Butler will host a vaccine booster clinic on Nov. 18. Collegian file photo.
ELLIE ALLEN | EDITOR-IN-CHIEF | emallen2@butler.edu
Butler University will host a COVID-19 vaccine booster clinic on Nov. 18 from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the Health and Recreation Complex. In an email sent to the Butler community on Nov. 9, the university announced that all students, faculty, staff and Butler affiliates will be eligible to receive the vaccine booster. Butler encourages the booster shot for those who qualify but it is not required.
Jacqueline Collier, a fifth-year pharmacy major, said she feels Butler offering the clinic makes it easier for students to get the booster and more likely that they will actually get vaccinated.
“That’s a great way to just get it for free, and like for an easy convenience for all these students that can’t drive,” Collier said. “So I think it’s just a good way to encourage [the] vaccine, like getting the vaccine without having any barriers to it.”
Butler offered walk-in and online scheduling to those wishing to receive the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine booster. However, as of 4:00 p.m. Nov. 9, the online scheduling platform states that there are no open slots and walk-ins will no longer be accepted. It also states that more information will be released about a potential additional clinic date.
Gabriella Tzougros, a sophomore arts administration major, said she was able to get an appointment, but that soon after she registered, timeslots had been filled.
“I saw the notification, and I think it was within 10 minutes when I signed up,” Tzougros said. “Then maybe two minutes later I looked and it was full.”
Booster shots are recommended for recipients of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine who are 65 years or older and people who live in long-term care facilities, have underlying health conditions, or live or work in high risk settings. Butler’s campus is considered a high risk setting. For Johnson & Johnson, anyone who is 18 and older and received the vaccine at least two months ago is recommended to get the vaccine booster.
Eleni Tzougros, a sophomore middle secondary education major, said she was not aware that she was eligible for the vaccine booster prior to Butler offering the clinic.
“I actually heard a lot of people in my age group already had signed up for outsourced COVID boosters, and I didn’t know that was an option, like I didn’t see that in the news,” Tzougros said. “So I was really excited that we get the chance to get a booster.”
According to the CDC, it is safe to receive a vaccine booster from a different provider than the first doses.
Recipients of the Pfizer vaccine administered by Butler last spring will be eligible to get the booster. However, those who received the vaccine from Butler’s vaccine clinic in August will not be eligible to receive the booster since they have not exceeded the six month recommended period.
In a trial conducted by Pfzier, the booster shot was found to have 95.6% efficacy when compared to those who didn’t receive the booster.
Spencer Klimek, a graduate student in Butler’s physician assistant program, said he has already received his vaccine booster and thinks getting vaccinated is an important step towards returning to pre-pandemic life.
“I’m just honestly looking forward to getting everything back to normal and the best way to do that is to abide by the rules that we are told to follow and if we do that, that’s going to maximize our chance to get back to normal as soon as we can,” Klimek said.
After implementing a vaccine requirement, 95% of campus has received the COVID-19 vaccine.
Staff reporter Sarah Nitti and co-opinion editor Caitlin Segraves contributed to this story.
This story was updated at 3:18 a.m. on Nov. 10.
