CDC Expands Eligibility for COVID-19 Booster Shots

Source: Centers for Disease Control (CDC)

[On Thursday], CDC Director Rochelle P. Walensky, M.D., M.P.H., endorsed the CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices’ (ACIP) recommendation for a booster shot of COVID-19 vaccines in certain populations. The Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) authorizationexternal icon and CDC’s recommendation for use are important steps forward as we work to stay ahead of the virus and keep Americans safe.

For individuals who received a Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, the following groups are eligible for a booster shot at 6 months or more after their initial series:

For the nearly 15 million people who got the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine, booster shots are also recommended for those who are 18 and older and who were vaccinated two or more months ago.

There are now booster recommendations for all three available COVID-19 vaccines in the United States. Eligible individuals may choose which vaccine they receive as a booster dose. Some people may have a preference for the vaccine type that they originally received, and others may prefer to get a different booster. CDC’s recommendations now allow for this type of mix and match dosing for booster shots.

Millions of people are newly eligible to receive a booster shot and will benefit from additional protection. However, today’s action should not distract from the critical work of ensuring that unvaccinated people take the first step and get an initial COVID-19 vaccine. More than 65 million Americans remain unvaccinated, leaving themselves – and their children, families, loved ones, and communities– vulnerable.

Available data right now show that all three of the COVID-19 vaccines approved or authorized in the United States continue to be highly effective in reducing risk of severe disease, hospitalization, and death, even against the widely circulating Delta variant. Vaccination remains the best way to protect yourself and reduce the spread of the virus and help prevent new variants from emerging.

The following is attributable to Dr. Walensky:

“These recommendations are another example of our fundamental commitment to protect as many people as possible from COVID-19. The evidence shows that all three COVID-19 vaccines authorized in the United States are safe – as demonstrated by the over 400 million vaccine doses already given. And, they are all highly effective in reducing the risk of severe disease, hospitalization, and death, even in the midst of the widely circulating Delta variant.”

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13 Comments

  1. It’s about time you were concerned what the long-term effects of zoom school, isolation and masks would have on little kids and their development during what are incredibly important developmental years for them.

  2. DUKE – unless the under 12 group brings the virus home to their elderly grandparents, neighbors, mom with cancer, etc. Come on man, this has been going on too long to forget the risk the under 12 group poses to the rest of society. My daughter’s friend brought it home to her family’s house and infected everyone, including a few neighbor playmates.

  3. Sac – let’s get the vaccine to people who need it… not the ones who don’t. And kids under 12 don’t need it. Grandparents should go ahead and get it. It’s going to be going on forever… unless we can gain some sense/perspective.

  4. Obviously we are getting ahead of ourselves here, as we haven’t even determined if it’s safe for Kids under 12. So at this point we know kids don’t need it, and we don’t know if it’s safe for them. Seems a bit odd/anti science… no?

  5. There is seemingly also a consensus coming that having been infected gives you at least as good of protection as the vaccine (though with both waning with time). Hurtling towards vaccinating the group that doesn’t need it seems more along the lines of desperately doing something just to do something…which also seems rather anti science, right?

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