A senior Nevada immunization official said Thursday that people of “all professions” are eligible for an additional injection of the Pfizer vaccine if they believe their job puts them at increased risk of COVID-19.

The state is encouraging those who have already received two doses of the Pfizer vaccine “to assess their own risk in their profession” to determine if they might need a booster, said Karissa Loper, head of the country’s health bureau. Nevada Department of Health. Personal services.

“Every profession is covered and can look up this vaccine booster,” Loper said.

During a press briefing, state officials referred to their Vaccine Deployment Manual, a document listing hundreds of jobs that make up Nevada’s essential frontline workforce, as a guide. to determine eligibility.

In practice, professional eligibility is “based on their own personal assessment of their risk of exposure to COVID-19 in their workplace,” Loper said at the state’s weekly coronavirus briefing, to be held now every two weeks.

Loper’s comments come a week after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention approved Pfizer’s booster shots for some populations who have already received a double dose. The federal agency has recommended a booster for people 65 and older as well as people 50 to 64 with underlying health conditions.

The CDC also said people 18 and older with underlying conditions and in certain jobs, such as healthcare workers and teachers, could also benefit from a recall based on an assessment. personal risk. The agency stopped before recommending boosters for these groups.

By offering booster shots to all professions, Nevada is taking a broad interpretation of the CDC’s guidelines, which on Monday listed eight professional groups eligible for booster shots. It can also be a hands-on approach, in that across the country people are only asked to self-certify their eligibility based on their job or health status, not document it. .

At the start of the vaccination rollout, the vaccination manual was used to determine who might be on the front line to get a dose when supplies were scarce. Supply is no longer an issue, even with the door wide open to all professions for boosters.

“There is an adequate supply of Pfizer vaccine statewide, both in your urban and rural areas,” Loper said.

The state has administered more than 29,000 thirds of doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines since mid-August, when people with severely or moderately weakened immune systems due to an organ transplant or other condition serious medical practitioner were allowed to receive an additional dose, according to reports. from the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services. Almost half, or almost 14,000 doses, were administered in the past 10 days.

Contact Mary Hynes at mhynes@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0336. To follow @ MaryHynes1 on Twitter.