The “up-to-date” definition for COVID-19 vaccination has been through many iterations. It’s important to stay informed on the latest COVID-19 vaccine information in order to be sure that you and your loved ones, your patients and your community are up to date.
The 2023–2024 updated COVID-19 vaccines more closely targets the XBB lineage of the Omicron variant and could restore protection against severe COVID-19 that may have decreased over time. CDC anticipates the updated vaccines will be better at fighting currently circulating variants.
Below is the latest guidance:
People aged 5—64 years:
- You are up to date when you get 1 updated 2023–2024 COVID-19 vaccine.
Children aged 6 months—4 years:
- Children Who Are Not Vaccinated: Children aged 6 months–4 years should get two or three doses of updated COVID-19 vaccine depending on which vaccine they receive. For more information, click or tap here.
- Children Who Got Previous COVID-19 Vaccine(s): Children aged 6 months–4 years who got COVID-19 vaccines before September 12, 2023, should get one or two doses of updated COVID-19 vaccine depending on which vaccine and the number of doses they’ve previously received. For more information, click or tap here.
Everyone aged 65 years and older:
- People aged 65 years and older who received 1 dose of any updated 2023-2024 COVID-19 vaccine (Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna or Novavax) should receive 1 additional dose of an updated COVID-19 vaccine at least 4 months after the previous updated dose. For more Novavax information, click or tap here.
People who are moderately or severely immunocompromised may get additional doses of updated COVID-19 vaccine.
How well COVID-19 vaccines work
- People who are up to date have lower risk of severe illness, hospitalization and death from COVID-19 than people who are unvaccinated or who have not completed the doses recommended for them by CDC.
- Additional updated COVID-19 vaccine doses can help restore protection that has decreased since previous vaccination.
- CDC will continue to provide updates as they learn more.
About COVID-19 vaccines
COVID-19 vaccines available in the United States are effective at protecting people from getting seriously ill, being hospitalized, and dying. As with other vaccine-preventable diseases, you are best protected from COVID-19 when you stay up to date with the recommended vaccinations.
COVID-19 vaccines recommended for use in the United States:
- Pfizer-BioNTech
- Moderna
- Novavax
Getting vaccines if you recently had COVID-19
If you recently had COVID-19, you still need to stay up to date with your vaccines, but you may consider delaying your vaccine by 3 months.
Reinfection is less likely in the weeks to months after infection. However, certain factors could be reasons to get a vaccine sooner rather than later, such as:
- personal risk of severe disease,
- risk of disease in a loved one or close contact,
- local COVID-19 hospital admission level,
- and the most common COVID-19 variant currently causing illness.
For the latest COVID-19 vaccine recommendations, please visit the CDC website.
Made possible in part by the Washington State Department of Health through a grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This information does not necessarily reflect the official policies of the Washington State Department of Health or the Department of Health and Human Services.
Source: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/stay-up-to-date.html