COVID-19 vaccine

Getting vaccinated protects you against COVID-19, helps prevent you from getting seriously ill and reduces the spread of COVID-19 to others. 

Booster doses

To receive the best protection against serious illness or death from COVID-19, you should get all the recommended doses for your age or individual health needs. Boosters are important to maintain this protection.

Booster doses are free for everyone.

All adults can get a booster if it’s been 6 months or longer since their last COVID-19 booster or confirmed infection (whichever is most recent) for additional protection against severe illness from COVID.

This is particularly recommended for people at higher risk of severe illness, including:

• everyone 65 years and over

• everyone 18 years and over with medical comorbidities, disability or complex health needs.

Children and adolescents aged 5 to 17 with health conditions that put them at risk of severe illness can also get a booster dose if it’s been 6 months since their last dose or COVID-19 infection, based on an individual risk assessment with their immunisation provider.

Booster doses are not recommended at this time for children and adolescents aged 18 years or under who do not have any risk factors for severe COVID-19.

All vaccines are approved for use in Australia and continue to provide very strong protection against serious illness from COVID-19, however, Omicron-specific bivalent vaccines are preferred for boosters.

Learn more about booster doses here.

Where can I access a COVID-19 vaccine? 

Please contact your GP to discuss vaccination locations or search for nearby clinics using the COVID-19 Vaccine Clinic Finder. 

Select UFS Pharmacies in Ballarat are also offering COVID vaccination. Please visit the UFS website directly to book. 

Eligibility

Age requirements will indicate which vaccine is best suited for you.

Learn more about vaccine eligibility here.

If you have recently recovered from COVID-19 

People over the age of 5 who have had COVID-19 and are due for their next dose of COVID-19 vaccine should wait 3 months from testing positive before getting their next vaccine dose.

Waiting for a 3-month period after infection before COVID-19 vaccination provides better and longer protection against re-infection from COVID-19.

Assistance for people with a disability 

If you need additional support to receive a vaccine, please contact the GPHU on 1300 988 908 or via email at phu@bhs.org.au

Vaccination records

To access information regarding your COVID-19 Digital Certificate, visit the Department of Health website.

To access your immunisation history, visit Services Australia.

If your COVID-19 immunisation history is missing or incorrect, visit the MyGov website to request an amendment.

Overseas travel

If you have received immunisations overseas, you can add them to the Australian Immunisation Register here.

If you are travelling overseas, you may require an International COVID-19 Vaccination Certificate. Access your International COVID-19 Vaccination Certificate on the Services Australia website.