COVID vaccines have become harder to find during the summer surge

With a new booster coming soon, getting a dose of the current coronavirus vaccine is growing more difficult in San Diego and in other parts of California.

A survey of local retail pharmacies and medical providers shows that, while the current vaccine released last fall can still be found, getting vaccinated during the current summer surge is not as easy as it was in the spring.

The new vaccine incorporates the KP.2 coronavirus subvariant, which is several steps closer on the evolutionary tree to the pathogen likely to be spreading in the community than XBB, the type incorporated in the current vaccine. Both, though, are descendants of the original Omicron variant that caused the COVID-19 pandemic’s largest spike of cases in late 2021 and early 2022, so the current booster should still provide some protection.

CVS Health confirmed in an email this week that it is “receiving limited additional supply of the current COVID-19 vaccine” as manufacturers are preparing for an updated version to be released this fall. The popular drugstore chain said that customers can still find doses at some if its local stores by using the vaccine finder app on its website, CVS.com.