In mid-April, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) announced that people 65 or older with one Pfizer or Moderna updated booster can roll up their sleeves again if it has been at least four months since that last shot.
The schedule is a little different for people with weak immune systems. Most can choose a second Pfizer or Moderna updated booster at least two months after their first. Under the latest FDA and CDC guidelines, they also could get additional doses if their physician decides they need one.
Unfortunately, older adults continue to have the highest rates of hospitalization from COVID-19, even though cases among other parts of the population have declined.
CDC officials stressed there is variety among immune-compromised patients, from people with only mild impairment to those trying to replenish immunity that grueling cancer treatment knocked out.
Anyone who has gotten their initial vaccinations but has yet to have an updated booster can still get one. Only 42% of Americans 65 and older — and just 20% of all adults — have gotten one of those updated boosters since September.
The Food and Drug Administration has taken steps to make coronavirus vaccinations simpler for everyone. From now on, anyone getting a Pfizer or Moderna dose —a booster or their first-ever vaccination — will get an updated version rather than the outdated original shots.
