Key Takeaways
- The FDA has approved updated COVID shots for 2024/2025.
- Right now, only Pfizer’s and Moderna’s vaccines have received authorization.
- You should get the new COVID vaccines as soon as possible. You’ll also want to think about scheduling your annual flu shot, as well as an RSV shot if you’re eligible.
The updated COVID vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna are here, and they’re just one of the vaccines you need to schedule as fall approaches.
Almost everyone should also get an annual flu shot, and adults aged 75 and up should get an RSV vaccine if they didn’t last year, as should adults 60 and up who are at increased risk of severe RSV.
How are you supposed to prioritize your immunizations, and what can you expect from each one?
If efficiency is most important to you, you can get them all at once, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
“[Getting them at the same time] is a good idea for someone who might have a hard time getting back to the doctor’s office or pharmacy,” Aaron Glatt, MD, chief of infectious diseases at Mount Sinai South Nassau in Oceanside, NY, and a spokesperson for the Infectious Diseases Society of America, told Verywell.
There’s no minimum wait time between vaccines if you do choose to space them out, which many people do to avoid compounded side effects like arm soreness.
“Getting multiple vaccines at the same visit may increase the risk of some side effects,” the CDC confirms. “When side effects do occur, they are typically mild to moderate, like arm pain, swelling, headache, and fatigue. These side effects are usually short-lived.”
Here’s what to know about each vaccine type.
COVID Vaccines
On Thursday, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved and authorized updated vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna.
Because COVID is continuously mutating, it can evade protection from older COVID vaccines. That’s why you need booster shots. In June, an advisory committee to the FDA selected the primary target for the 2024/2025 COVID vaccines: the KP.2 variant.
Pfizer and Moderna, whose vaccine platforms utilize mRNA technology, were able to quickly produce new shots to target KP.2 after the FDA’s announcement. Novavax, however, was already at work on a vaccine targeting an earlier variant, JN.1. In a statement, the company said it will continue to pursue that shot, and that it should still offer sufficient protection for newer variants like KP.2. The updated Novavax vaccine has not yet received FDA clearance.
Who Needs a COVID Shot?
The FDA recommends everyone 6 months and older get an updated COVID shot.
Both Moderna and Pfizer's vaccines are authorized for children as young as 6 months old.
Most people only need one dose of the updated vaccine, though immunocompromised individuals should talk to their doctor about additional doses. Young children may need additional doses, too.
How to Time Your COVID Shot
If you recently received the now-outdated version of one of the vaccines, you should wait two months from the date of that vaccination to receive another shot.
Otherwise, get the vaccine as soon as it’s available in your pharmacy or doctor’s office, Marcus Plescia, MD, MPH, chief medical officer of the Association of State and Territorial Health Officers, told Verywell, especially if you are hoping to travel or want to protect yourself or others from getting COVID. He recommends seeing if your doctor or pharmacy will let you make an appointment in advance since the demand for COVID shots may be high as soon as they roll out.
As usual, a fall COVID surge is expected as the weather cools and people begin to spend more time indoors, where viruses have an easier time spreading.
Flu Shots
The influenza vaccine is updated to match the circulating strains of the virus every year.
Who Needs a Flu Shot?
The CDC recommends everyone six months and older get a flu shot unless they’ve had a severe allergic reaction to a previous flu shot or ingredient in a flu shot. Several additional groups should also not receive the FluMist nasal spray flu vaccine.
People 65 and older should ask about a high-dose version of the flu shot for expanded protection. Pharmacies stock the largest variety, so if you are going to the doctor’s office, call ahead to make sure they have the flu vaccine version you want/need.
How to Time Your Flu Shot
The ideal time to get your flu vaccine is between early September and the end of October, William Schaffner, MD, a professor in the Department of Infectious Diseases at Vanderbilt University and a spokesperson for the Infectious Diseases Society of America, told Verywell. But since flu season can last through June, it’s never too late to get it.
“Keep in mind that it can take two weeks to be effective,” Shaffner added.
RSV Vaccines
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a virus that, like the flu, circulates in the fall and winter. While it’s mild in some people, it can cause serious respiratory illness and even death in vulnerable groups like babies, toddlers, and older adults, especially those with chronic conditions.
RSV immunizations only became available for the first time last year. Three are approved for adults 60 and older, while two are approved for children 2 and under.
All RSV vaccines are currently given as a single dose.
Who Needs an RSV Shot?
Everyone 75 and older should get an RSV vaccine, according to the CDC. It’s also recommended for people 60 to 74 who have chronic health conditions or who live in nursing homes or long-term care facilities.
The CDC also recommends pregnant people protect their babies from severe RSV disease by getting a specific vaccine, Abrysvo by Pfizer, between weeks 32 and 36 of pregnancy during September through January. This offers extra protection to infants born during RSV season, though infants are eligible for the Beyfortus immunization from birth.
How to Time Your RSV Shot
For now, the RSV vaccine is given just once, so anyone who received it last year does not need it again. That guidance could change for next year, as researchers study how long protection from the vaccine lasts.
The CDC says eligible individuals should get the RSV vaccine in late August or early September before the RSV virus begins circulating.
What Is the First Sign of RSV? A Timeline of RSV Symptoms
How to Get Vaccines for Free
You can still get vaccines at no cost, but you’ll have to do some homework to be sure you won’t have to pay, Plescia said.
For people who are insured, because the flu, COVID, and RSV vaccines are recommended by the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, insurers must cover the cost for their members with no copay. However, Plescia emphasized that’s only the case if you go to a doctor or pharmacy that is part of your insurer’s network of participating providers.
To make sure you get your shot at an in-network provider, call the member number on the back of your insurance card and confirm the participation of the doctor or pharmacy. If out-of-network, you’ll have to pay all or some of the cost of the vaccines. For the COVID vaccines, the full price is about $120.
If you don’t have insurance or don’t have a local doctor or pharmacy that’s in network, call your local community health center to ask about the availability of free vaccines, or call your local or state health department to ask about vaccine clinics and appointments. You can get contact information for your local health department by calling 311. Call 211 for contact information for your state health department.
The information in this article is current as of the date listed, which means newer information may be available when you read this. For the most recent updates on COVID-19, visit ourcoronavirus news page.
