Doctors say we need the updated COVID-19 shot. So why haven't we heard more about it?

When vaccines against COVID-19 first became available in Canada, public service announcements flooded radio and TV broadcasts and repeatedly popped up online and across social media feeds. More than 80 per cent of people in Canada responded, lining up at mass vaccination clinics or booking appointments for their first two doses. Federal, provincial and territorial governments' public awareness campaigns continued over the next few years, actively promoting booster shots to protect against waning immunity — but the uptake was considerably lower. Now, there are two new COVID-19 vaccines — reformulated by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna — to fight the XBB.1.5 Omicron subvariant that has become dominant across the country. Yet despite the fact every province and territory now has at least one updated mRNA vaccine in hand, some experts say public awareness efforts to drive vaccine uptake aren't what they used to be. Doctors say it's vital to get this version of the vaccine because it offers pr