The 90% Project: Demand for boosters in Whanganui jumps as wait time reduced

The Whanganui DHB is delivering hundreds of booster doses each day, as the campaign to boost waning immunity ramps up. Photo / NZME

The majority of Covid-19 vaccinations being delivered by the Whanganui District Health Board are now booster doses, new figures show.

Up until this week, anyone who received their second dose of the Covid-19 vaccine more than six months ago was eligible for a third dose of the vaccine, designed to boost waning immunity.

On Wednesday, that waiting period was reduced to four months in line with public health advice - a step implemented to prepare for the arrival of Omicron, which is believed to have some resistance to vaccines.

According to preliminary figures provided by the Whanganui DHB, the number of booster doses delivered has outstripped that of first and second doses since the beginning of December.

While the DHB couldn't provide a definitive figure on the number of booster doses delivered, they have made up about 60 per cent of doses delivered by the DHB on an average day over December.

On Wednesday, as the waiting period officially ticked down from six months to four, the DHB delivered 707 doses of the vaccine - the highest daily total since November.

Around 80 per cent of those doses were boosters; the majority were walk-ins who had just become eligible that day.

The majority of Kiwis became fully vaccinated in the months after August, with around 1.2 million Kiwis now eligible for a booster dose.

But while those who recently became eligible for a booster can walk in for a jab, the Government's online booking system is not yet prepared to take bookings for newly-eligible patients.

Louise Allsopp, the Whanganui DHB's Covid-19 vaccination lead, said in the meantime, anyone eligible for a booster was able to walk into a vaccination centre to receive a dose.

"If you've had your second Covid-19 vaccination four months ago or more, please drop in for a booster to continue to protect yourself and your family against the virus," Allsopp said.