What to Know About Getting a COVID-19 Vaccine This Fall

Health officials are recommending that people get the shot after a discussion with a health care provider

Rachel Nania,

Updated October 06, 2025

AARP

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En español

Published August 20, 2025

/ Updated October 06, 2025

covid vaccine vials on orange background

AARP (Getty Images)

COVID Vaccine FAQs

Who can get the COVID-19 vaccine?
When will the new COVID-19 vaccines be available?
What health conditions increase your risk?
Where can I get a COVID-19 vaccine?
Will insurance cover the vaccine?
What should older adults know?
When should you get the vaccine?

For millions of Americans, getting a COVID-19 vaccine this fall may be different and more difficult than in years past, due to guidelines that no longer embrace a universal recommendation.

Here’s the latest on what you need to know.

Who can get the COVID-19 vaccine?

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) updated its guidelines on Oct. 6 to recommend this year’s COVID-19 vaccines for adults 65 and older using “shared clinical decision-making,” which is a discussion between a health care provider and a patient.

People ages 6 months to 64 years can also receive the vaccine using shared clinical decision-making and taking into consideration health conditions that increase a person’s risk of severe illness from COVID-19. A health care provider can be anyone who administers vaccines, including a doctor, pharmacist or nurse, the CDC says.

How are these recommendations different from previous years?

The guidelines for 2025 mirror recent recommendations from the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), a panel comprised of all new members selected by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. This year’s recommendations represent a departure from past COVID-19 guidance, which broadly encouraged vaccination for anyone 6 months and older.

Dr. Helen Chu, a professor of medicine in the Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the University of Washington School of Medicine, says that requiring shared clinical decision-making “introduces confusion to the patient about whether or not they’re able to get their vaccine.”

“Any barrier that you put in front of someone,” including uncertainty about whether someone is eligible for a vaccine, can decrease the rate of vaccination, says Dr. Rebecca Wurtz, an infectious disease physician and professor at the University of Minnesota School of Public Health.

Lower vaccination rates could mean “more people are ill that didn’t have to be ill, more people in the hospital that possibly could have been prevented and more people dying,” says Dr. Pamela Rockwell, a clinical professor of family medicine at the University of Michigan Medical School.

When will the new COVID vaccines be available?

Pfizer and Moderna’s updated vaccines — which more closely match variants of the coronavirus that are circulating and making people sick — are already in pharmacies and doctors’ offices throughout the country or making their way there.

An updated COVID-19 vaccine from Novavax is expected to be available in early fall, according to a spokesperson from Sanofi, the company that markets the vaccine.

What health conditions increase your risk of severe COVID-19?

There is a long list of health conditions that the CDC says can increase a person’s risk of severe illness from a coronavirus infection. The list includes asthma, cancer, heart disease, obesity, physical inactivity, depression and smoking, among others.

“More than half of adults meet one of these conditions,” says Dr. Kawsar Talaat, an associate professor in the department of international health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. “Which is why the [previous] ACIP recommended universal vaccination — because half of people meet these conditions,” and nearly everyone knows someone who is at greater risk of complications if they get COVID-19, she says.

Where can I get a COVID vaccine?

While doctors’ offices and health departments usually stock the vaccine, the vast majority of people roll up their sleeves at the pharmacy. During the 2024-2025 season, about 90 percent of people who received the COVID-19 vaccine got it at a pharmacy.

What can you expect at the pharmacy this year? It could depend on where you live. Several states have taken action to ensure easier access and more widespread availability by broadening COVID vaccine recommendations, for example.

Be prepared for the pharmacist to ask if you have any questions or concerns about the vaccine. Some experts recommend calling ahead to inquire about any specific policies at your pharmacy.

Will the vaccine be covered by insurance?

Vaccine recommendations made by ACIP and approved by the CDC are covered by most insurance plans at no cost-sharing.

AHIP, a trade association of health insurance companies, has also said that its members will “continue to cover all ACIP-recommended immunizations that were recommended as of Sept.1, 2025, including updated formulations of the COVID-19 and influenza vaccines, with no cost-sharing for patients through the end of 2026.”

If you’re concerned about insurance coverage, your pharmacist should be able to check it on the spot, so be sure to bring your insurance card, says Jigar Mehta, a pharmacist and manager of outpatient pharmacy operations at Beth Israel Lahey Health Pharmacy at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston.

What should older adults know?

People 75 and older have the highest risk of ending up in the hospital with COVID or COVID-related complications, says Dr. Robert H. Hopkins Jr., medical director of the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases and a professor of internal medicine and pediatrics at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. But they are not the only group at high risk.

Adults 50 to 64 are still at “substantially higher risk of hospitalization,” says Noel Brewer, a distinguished professor in public health and health behavior at the University of North Carolina. Roughly 94 percent of COVID deaths have been among adults 50 and older, according to CDC data.

Young children are also at increased risk, research shows.

Preliminary estimates from the CDC show that from Oct. 1, 2024, through June 7, 2025, there were between 270,000 and 440,000 hospitalizations from COVID-19 in the U.S. and between 32,000 and 51,000 deaths. The majority of adults hospitalized last year for COVID had not received the latest vaccine.

Studies suggest that COVID-19 vaccines have saved millions of lives worldwide and have prevented many more hospitalizations. The risk of long COVID, which affects an estimated 400 million people globally, is also significantly reduced with the vaccine, research shows.

“Even people who have had COVID before and have had the vaccine before, if they’re not up to date on their boosters, they are at much higher risk for long COVID following an infection,” Wurtz says.

When should you get the vaccine?

The best time to get the fall COVID vaccine is now, Hopkins says. “Because across much of the country, COVID is widespread,” he says.

But if you’ve had a COVID vaccine recently or a COVID infection, you’ll want to wait about three or four months before getting another shot, Talaat says.

“Because you want to maximize the protection you get from each dose. And if you just got a dose a couple of months ago, you’re still quite protected,” she explains.

Concerned about side effects like fatigue, fever and chills? Consider switching brands if you’ve experienced them in the past, Brewer says. “It may be that there are COVID-19 vaccines that will be less reactogenic for those folks,” he says.

Don’t forget about other essential vaccines: In addition to the COVID vaccine, flu shots are recommended in September and October. The RSV vaccine is also recommended for adults 75 and older and people 50 to 74 with certain health conditions.

Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect new information.

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