COVID-19 Vaccine News

February 29, 2024 — People ages 65 and older should get a COVID-19 booster vaccination 4 months after their last one, the CDC advised Wednesday.

February 21, 2024 — People vaccinated against COVID-19 were significantly less likely to have long COVID during the first few years of the pandemic, a new study from Michigan shows.

February 16, 2024 — A CDC advisory committee will meet this month to decide whether to recommend a spring COVID booster for vulnerable groups such as the elderly and people with weakened immune systems.

February 2, 2024 — The researchers took people who tested for COVID and then asked them about vaccine history. The bad news is only 22% of American adults have received the updated vaccine.

October 27, 2023 — Only 7.1% of adults and 2.1% of children in the United States have gotten the new version of the COVID-19 vaccine since it was authorized in mid-September, a CDC committee was told on Thursday.

October 13, 2023 — Since the the CDC recommended the COVID vaccine on Sept. 12, legions of parents are still searching for doses, especially for their youngest children, and are growing increasingly frustrated.

October 13, 2023 — About 7 million people in the U.S. have gotten the new COVID-19 vaccine as the nation heads into what health officials now consider cold, flu, and COVID season.

October 5, 2023 — The 4 million shots given through Sept. 30 is twice the number reported by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services last month.

October 4, 2023 — The FDA said the Novavax shot is authorized for anyone age 12 and older. Novavax uses a different technology to trigger protection than the mRNA shots made by Pfizer and Moderna. Novavax works similarly to much older vaccines.

October 4, 2023 — State health departments and some pharmacies or health care sites where the vaccines are given may be able to issue a vaccine record.

October 2, 2023 — Scientists who pioneered an underlying technology to harness fragile genetic material in a way that ultimately resulted in the mRNA vaccines used to combat the COVID-19 pandemic were honored Monday.

October 2, 2023 — Around 1 million people got a Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 shot, and nearly 800,000 people got Moderna’s version of the vaccine during the week ending Sept. 22.

September 29, 2023 — As the rollout of the newly formulated shot begins in earnest, many Americans are finding roadblocks, while federal officials urge everyone to be patient and get the shot when you can.

September 28, 2023 — Technical issues that resulted in denied insurance coverage for the updated COVID-19 vaccines have been “largely, if not completely, resolved,” the nation’s largest health insurers told federal officials on Wednesday.

September 13, 2023 — Who should be most concerned about these respiratory illnesses? What is the optimal time to get one or more of these shots? And how long should you wait to get the new booster if you had COVID this summer?

September 12, 2023 — CDC's director and a panel of experts agreed to recommend the new COVID-19 vaccine for all Americans age 6 and over.

September 11, 2023 — The FDA today authorized the newest COVID-19 vaccine, the first not to target the initial or “ancestral” strain of the virus.

September 11, 2023 — Israeli researchers say getting the COVID-19 vaccine at the same time as the flu vaccine offers almost the same protection as getting the COVID vaccine alone.

September 6, 2023 — The updated vaccine that better protects against currently circulating strains of the virus that causes COVID-19 may be available as soon as next week.

September 6, 2023 — Moderna says its upcoming COVID-19 vaccine should work against the BA.2.86 variant that has caused worry about a possible surge in cases.

September 5, 2023 — Find answers to your questions about coming vaccines for COVID-19, the flu, and RSV.

August 22, 2023 — People may get more protection against COVID-19 if they get their vaccinations and boosters in the same arm, a new study says.

June 23, 2023 — Moderna has applied for FDA approval of a new COVID-19 vaccine targeting the predominant strain of the virus called XBB.1.5. The company said it is prepared to roll out the shot this fall.

May 5, 2023 — There is no evidence that COVID-19 vaccines cause disruptions in women’s menstrual cycles, according to results from a study of nearly 3 million women in Sweden.

May 2, 2023 — The U.S. government will no longer require federal workers or international air travelers to be vaccinated for COVID-19, the Biden administration announced Monday.

April 27, 2023 — A new study shows that people with long COVID respond differently to COVID vaccines, and that the condition may be caused by a dysfunction of the immune system.

April 4, 2023 — People ages 65 and older and those with a weak immune system may choose to get a second COVID-19 booster shot starting later this spring, according to a new report.

March 29, 2023 — The CDC has updated its COVID-19 booster shot guidelines to clarify that only a single dose of the latest bivalent booster is recommended at this time.

March 29, 2023 — People who had low hopes from a COVID-19 vaccine reported more negative side effects from the shots in a study released this week.

March 21, 2023 — The FDA might be preparing to OK a second round of COVID-19 booster shots that target the original virus as well as the Omicron variant to protect people over 65 and others who are particularly vulnerable.

March 15, 2023 — COVID vaccines must work even better, whether by becoming variant-proof, finding other administration routes, or finding different targets to attack. All of these issues – and more -- are under investigation.

February 23, 2023 — In the largest and most diverse analysis to date, researchers have found that the risk of post-COVID heart attack or stroke was reduced by 41% in people who are fully vaccinated.

February 18, 2023 — A new study shows the Pfizer vaccine is safe and highly effective against COVID-19 in children as young as 6 months old.

February 17, 2023 — The natural immunity provided by COVID-19 infection protects a person against severe illness on a par with two doses of mRNA vaccine, a study published in The Lancet says.

February 16, 2023 — Moderna will join Pfizer in making its COVID-19 vaccine available for free once government coverage ends later this year, the company announced Wednesday.

February 15, 2023 — A study focusing on fatigue and other long COVID symptoms saw some differences in severity of symptoms based on COVID variants, but these differences became insignificant when researchers accounted for vaccination status. The lead researcher says this discovery suggests that vaccinations may lower the risk of long COVID.

February 14, 2023 — Vaccination appears to reduce the heightened risk of developing type 2 diabetes after a COVID-19 infection, according to a new study published in JAMA Network Open.

February 13, 2023 — A new CDC study shows that people who got the updated bivalent COVID-19 booster by the end of last year were 14 times less likely to die from the disease than people who were never vaccinated, and three times less likely to die from the disease than those who got only the original vaccines.

February 7, 2023 — Vaccine hesitation is once again flying as videos depicting movement disorders go viral.

February 4, 2023 — California says it will no longer require schoolchildren to be vaccinated in order to attend in-person classes.

January 26, 2023 — New data for the bivalent COVID-19 booster shot shows that it cuts the risk in half for symptomatic infection from the now predominant Omicron subvariant, XBB.1.5.

January 26, 2023 — The FDA's vaccine advisers lent support to the agency's plan to try to simplify future COVID shots, with an aim of having many people get just one uniform dose in the fall.

January 24, 2023 — A national advisory committee is expected to vote Thursday on whether Americans should pivot to an annual COVID-19 shot (like a flu shot) vs. periodic booster shots. WebMD asks health experts your most pressing questions about a possible switch to a yearly shot.

January 23, 2023 — – U.S. health officials want to simplify the recommended COVID-19 vaccine protocol, making it more like the process for annual flu shots with a single annual shot.

January 19, 2023 — People who have been infected with COVID-19 and vaccinated against it are more likely to avoid serious illness than those who were only previously infected, a new study says.

January 17, 2023 — As more research arrives on the bivalent vaccine, an FDA expert panel prepares to discuss future plans.

January 10, 2023 — Acceptance of COVID-19 vaccines increased 20% in the past year in the U.S., with 8 in 10 people now saying they have been vaccinated or are willing to do so, according to a new global survey.

January 6, 2023 — A new report shows wide racial and ethnic differences in COVID-19 vaccination of children, with Asian children being the most likely to be vaccinated and Black children being the least likely.