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The County of Sonoma is working with regional healthcare partners to ensure that vaccine distribution and administration is approached through the lens of equity as laid out in its vaccine equity strategies.

Who can receive a COVID-19 vaccine?

Everyone 6 months and older can get a vaccine at no cost. Parental consent (see options below) is required for minors. Parents are encouraged to take their children to their primary care providers, local pharmacies or local vaccine clinics. Some clinics, but not all, are providing pediatric vaccines — check with each provider before arriving or make an appointment at myturn.ca.gov.

Recommendations for the interval between mRNA COVID-19 vaccine doses

Some people ages 12 through 64 years, especially males ages 12 through 39 years, may benefit from getting their second mRNA COVID19 vaccine dose eight weeks after receiving their first dose. 

Providers should continue to recommend the three-week (Pfizer-BioNTech) or four-week (Moderna) interval for patients who are: 

• At higher risk of having an inadequate response to the first mRNA vaccine dose, such as those that are moderately or severely immunocompromised.
• At higher risk for severe COVID-19, such as adults ages 65 years and older.
• In need of rapid protection, such as during high levels of community transmission. 
• Children ages 5–11.

Though three to four week intervals remain safe and effective for mRNA COVID-19 vaccines, a longer interval may be considered for some populations. While the risk remains small, the relative risk for developing myocarditis is higher for males ages 12-39, and might be reduced by extending the time between the first and second dose to eight weeks. From March 2020 to January 2021, the risk for myocarditis was 16 times higher among unvaccinated patients WITH COVID-19 than among patients without COVID-19. This is why the CDC states that the known risks of COVID-19 illness and its related, possibly severe complications, such as long-term health problems, hospitalization, and even death, far outweigh the potential risks of having a rare adverse reaction to vaccination, including the possible risk of myocarditis. For more detailed information, please visit the CDC’s Interim Clinical Considerations for Use of COVID-19 Vaccines.

For children ages 6 months to 4 years old, the number of doses and intervals are:

• Pfizer: three doses, with the second dose administered three weeks after the first dose and the third dose at least 8 weeks later.
• Moderna: two doses, with the second dose administered four weeks after the first dose.

Eligibility for bivalent booster doses

Updated COVID-19 booster shots specifically formulated to protect against the highly contagious omicron variant are available in Sonoma County.

The new boosters, known as bivalent vaccines, are made by Pfizer and Moderna. The Food and Drug Administration has authorized the Pfizer bivalent booster for anyone 12 and older and the Moderna bivalent booster for anyone 18 and older. The bivalent boosters can be given two months after completion of the primary series or the most recent booster dose of a monovalent COVID-19 vaccine.

The original monovalent vaccines will still be used for the primary vaccine series and booster doses for the 6 month to 11-year age groups.

In Sonoma County, those eligible for the new booster can obtain a shot through primary health care providers, health centers and pharmacies, as well as Sonoma County’s vaccine clinic at the Roseland Community Center and the LHI clinic at the Rohnert Park Community Center.

Check with your health care provider or vaccine clinic to see if second booster doses are available.  

Options for consent for minors

Persons younger than 18 must have parental or guardian consent given by a legally authorized representative (parent or guardian). An emancipated minor may consent for him/herself. Currently, only the Pfizer vaccine has received Emergency Use Authorization for people under 18.

Allowable consent includes:

• Parent/guardian accompanies the minor in person.
• If the parent/guardian cannot accompany the minor, a signed written consent is acceptable. The written consent must verify the parent/guardian has been provided the Pfizer EUA Fact Sheet.
• Phone or video consent is possible if the parent/guardian confirms that they have been provided the Pfizer EUA Fact Sheet or the Fact Sheet is read to the parent/guardian.

A sample consent form from the California Department of Public Health can be found here. The Sonoma County Office of Education also has consent forms in English and Spanish.

To find clinics where minors can be vaccinated, visit the Vaccine Clinics page.