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

These recommendations, which shape the national immunization schedule and insurance coverage, become final only after the CDC director signs off.

Dr. Helen Chu, a professor of medicine in the Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the University of Washington School of Medicine, says 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.

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 are stocking the vaccine, about 90 percent of COVID-19 shots given in the U.S. during the 2024-2025 season were administered in pharmacies. The same is true for the 2023-2024 season, federal data shows.

Though this year’s recommendations are more restrictive, if adopted by the CDC, they should help clear up confusion many have faced in recent weeks when trying to get a vaccine at the pharmacy, due to varying state and store policies.

Some barriers to access still persist, 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 my hope is that we are getting beyond that point with these recommendations. I’m hoping that we’re going to have [fewer] barriers so that people who want to get protected can get protected.”

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, had said that its members will “continue to cover all ACIP-recommended immunizations that were recommended as of September 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, Hopkins says. 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.