Who should get the updated coronavirus vaccine booster now—and who should wait?

Another important takeaway for me is that the CDC is moving away from counting the number of vaccine doses, and instead saying that people 12 and older are considered up to date on their coronavirus vaccines if they have received the original primary series — two doses of Pfizer, two doses of Moderna or one dose of Johnson & Johnson — plus this updated booster. That simplifies things a lot.

CNN: Do you think the coronavirus vaccine is going to be an annual shot, similar to the influenza vaccine?

Such cadence will be helpful, I think, because Americans are already used to getting a flu shot every year. Especially if the Covid-19 booster can be timed together with the flu shot, that could help improve vaccine uptake for both shots.

CNN: Friends and colleagues all have some version of this question: Should they get the new booster now? In your opinion, who should rush out and get the booster as soon as it’s available?

If someone has not gotten any vaccine, they need to get vaccinated with the primary series first. That means getting the two doses of the original Pfizer or Moderna vaccines (or two doses of Novavax or one dose of Johnson & Johnson). People need to complete the primary series prior to receiving the updated booster.

CNN: Who would you say could wait a little to get the updated booster?

The CDC also says that people are eligible to be vaccinated with the new booster if it’s been at least two months since their last vaccine. I don’t think most people need to rush out to get the booster exactly at the two-month mark. Some might decide to wait three or four months so that it’s a little bit later in the fall; that way, they could have better protection around the holidays.

CNN: I’ve been hearing from some people, like you said, who want to time the booster around winter holidays. Does that make sense to you?

Wen: I can understand why they’d want to do this. We know that the Covid-19 shots provide maximal effectiveness against infection in the several weeks after they’re given. There is sustained protection against severe illness, but the effectiveness against infection wanes somewhat over time.

It’s hard to predict the best timing the shots, though, because we don’t know what will happen this fall and winter. Right now, the case count for Covid-19 is high in a lot of parts of the country. For some people, especially those who are more vulnerable to severe illness, it makes sense to get optimal protection now. But case counts could also increase later this fall, and some others may decide to wait until a few weeks before Thanksgiving to get their booster.

In general, I’d go back to the point of last vaccine or infection. If you have not been vaccinated in 2022 and have not had a recent infection, I’d advise that you get the booster sooner rather than later. But if you recently had a booster and/or Covid-19, you could probably wait a month or so, to try to have more effectiveness against infection going into holidays.

CNN: Should parents of kids under 12 worry that they aren’t eligible yet for the update booster?

Wen: No, and I don’t think the case for boosting children is nearly as clear as it is for adults. The majority of children have had Covid-19. Recovery from infection, plus vaccination, affords them a very high level of protection against severe illness. I think it’s fine for parents of younger children to wait until an updated booster becomes available for this age group.