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lite.cnn.com - on gopher - inofficial
ARTICLE VIEW:
These are the conditions that make you eligible for an updated Covid-19
vaccine
By Jacqueline Howard, CNN
Updated:
7:46 PM EDT, Mon September 8, 2025
Source: CNN
This year’s updated Covid-19 vaccines have been approved by the US
Food and Drug Administration for adults 65 and older and younger people
with certain medical conditions that put them at a higher risk of a
severe Covid-19 infection.
Although federal officials have emphasized that people who want a
Covid-19 vaccine can get one after consulting with a doctor, the
narrower approval to shots for some people who were routinely able to
get them in the past.
Here’s what to know about getting an updated Covid-19 vaccine.
Who can get a Covid-19 vaccine?
“FDA has now issued marketing authorization for those at higher risk:
Moderna (6+ months), Pfizer (5+), and Novavax (12+). These vaccines are
available for all patients who choose them after consulting with their
doctors,” US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy
Jr. this week.
According to the , the conditions that put someone at a higher risk of
severe Covid-19 include:
Most of these conditions can affect the immune system in such a
significant way that they would inhibit the body’s ability to fight
off a Covid-19 infection, increasing the risk of that infection causing
severe illness or death.
These underlying conditions will make an estimated 100 million to 200
million people in the US eligible for a Covid-19 vaccine under the new
framework, FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary and Dr. Vinay Prasad, the
director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research,
wrote in an in May in the New England Journal of Medicine.
When and where will the vaccines be available?
Covid-19 vaccines are expected to be available at many pharmacies and
doctor’s offices in the United States this fall.
Both and said their updated Covid-19 vaccines are expected to be
available in the “coming days.”
Pfizer and BioNTech said that their Covid-19 vaccine this season
“will begin shipping immediately and be available in pharmacies,
hospitals, and clinics” across the country.
John C. Jacobs, president and CEO of vaccine maker Novavax, said in
that it will “work with our partner Sanofi to provide access to a
protein-based, non-mRNA COVID-19 vaccine for eligible individuals this
fall.”
CVS Pharmacy locations expect to receive the updated Covid-19 vaccines
in the coming days, spokesperson Amy Thibault said.
“We’ll administer FDA-authorized COVID-19 vaccines in states where
legally permitted at CVS Pharmacy and/or MinuteClinic to meet our
patients’ needs,” Thibault said in an email. “Appointments can be
scheduled online via CVS.com, through the CVS Health app, or patients
can walk into our pharmacies and clinics.”
But CVS is not yet offering Covid-19 vaccinations in some states, even
if someone meets the eligibility criteria. The pharmacy chain said that
it follows state-level pharmacy regulations and that in some states,
pharmacists are forbidden from giving vaccines that are not recommended
by the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. That group
of independent vaccine advisers is scheduled to meet September 18-19.
CVS said that, as of September 8, an authorized prescriber’s
prescription is required to offer Covid-19 vaccinations in Arizona,
Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maine, North Carolina, Oregon, Utah,
Virginia, West Virginia and the District of Columbia.
Walgreens also said in an email that most of its pharmacies are
preparing to offer the Covid-19 vaccine where regulations allow.
“Walgreens is prepared to offer the vaccine in states where we are
able to do so. In accordance with FDA approval and state requirements,
we will offer the vaccine to all adults ages 65 years and older, as
well as to individuals under 65, who are at higher risk for severe
outcomes from COVID-19, as determined by the CDC,” a spokesperson
said in an email Friday.
Most Covid-19 vaccinations in the US have happened at pharmacies.
During the 2023-24 respiratory virus season, an estimated 71.5% of
shots were given in pharmacies or drug stores, according to , followed
by an estimated 9.2% at clinics or health centers.
Can children and pregnant people get the vaccine?
Access may be different for some pregnant people and children.
In May, Kennedy announced major changes to . In updated
recommendations, children are able to get the vaccines after consulting
with a health care provider, what’s known as shared decision-making.
Then, emergency use authorizations for Covid-19 vaccines were
rescinded, which means , , is no longer authorized for children younger
than 5. Moderna’s vaccine is approved for children as young as 6
months, but only if they have an underlying condition that puts them at
higher risk. Children who are 12 and older and have at least one
underlying condition that puts them at severe risk of severe disease
are eligible for , the only protein-based, non-mRNA vaccine available
in the US.
The American Academy of Pediatrics broke with the CDC to It says that
all children ages 6 months through 23 months should receive a Covid-19
vaccine unless they have known allergies to the vaccine or its
ingredients. It also recommends a single dose of the vaccine for
children ages 2 through 18 years if they are at high risk of Covid-19,
residents of long-term care facilities, have never been vaccinated
against Covid-19 or live in a household with people who are high-risk
for Covid-19. It also says the vaccine should be available for this age
group even if they are not in these risk groups.
AAP President Dr. Susan Kressly said the new more limited vaccine
approvals add “further confusion and stress for parents trying to
make the best choices for their children,” which could be a barrier
to vaccination.
Experiences may vary for people during pregnancy, as well. After the
recommendation changes announced by Kennedy, there is no CDC guidance
or recommendation for women who are pregnant. Some women reported since
the shift that to get a Covid-19 vaccine.
However, pregnancy or recent pregnancy remain on the list of conditions
that put someone at higher risk for severe Covid-19, and the American
College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recently for Covid-19
vaccination during pregnancy.
Will insurance cover updated Covid-19 vaccines?
People who are covered by public insurance such as Medicare and
Medicaid and who meet the new FDA eligibility requirements will
probably continue to have Covid-19 vaccines covered, experts say.
There’s more uncertainty around how private insurance companies will
choose to adjust coverage. Some of the conditions listed as high risk
for Covid-19 – such as physical inactivity – are loosely defined
and may be left up to individual plans to interpret.
Kaiser Permanente, for example, said in a statement that its clinical
experts are “reviewing the details of the FDA’s approval of the
2025-26 COVID vaccine,” and the health care company “will also
review the CDC’s clinical guidance when it is released and evaluate
other sources of clinical recommendations, including relevant medical
societies, to ensure safe and effective administration of the COVID
vaccine.”
United Health Care said in a statement that “for our standard
commercial plans, we will continue to cover claims for COVID-19
vaccines with no cost share. We recommend that members in self-insured
employer sponsored plans always confirm their specific plan benefits.
Coverage of COVID-19 vaccines with no cost share is also available to
our Medicare members in accordance with CMS requirements and to our
Medicaid members in accordance with any applicable state
requirements.”
Under the Affordable Care Act, insurance companies are required to
cover vaccines for adults if they’ve been recommended by ACIP, the
CDC’s vaccine advisers. That group has endorsed Covid-19 vaccines in
previous years, but there’s a gray area around what will happen if
their recommendations differ from the CDC’s own recommendations,
experts say.
The committee also votes on whether vaccines should be added to the
federal Vaccines for Children program, which provides immunizations to
children whose families would not otherwise be able to afford them.
Can people who do not meet the new eligibility criteria still get a
Covid shot?
FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary that “100% of adults in this
country can still get the vaccine if they choose. We are not limiting
availability to anyone.”
Health care providers can provide Covid-19 vaccines “off-label” for
those who do not meet the new eligibility criteria based on their age
or overall health, Dr. Tina Tan, president of the Infectious Diseases
Society of America, Wednesday. A medical product is “off-label”
when it’s used outside of the terms for which the FDA has explicitly
approved it.
“And IDSA strongly urges doctors to continue recommending and
administering vaccination to their patients based on the best available
science,” she said. “However, pharmacists’ ability to provide
off-label vaccines may be severely constrained, underscoring the vital
role of physicians and other clinicians in maintaining access.”
How will providers know someone is eligible for the Covid shot?
Determining whether someone is eligible for Covid-19 vaccination may be
part of the process of making the appointment.
But it’s unclear whether a simple self-report of a condition will be
sufficient to justify vaccination, said Dr. Kelly Moore, president and
CEO of immunize.org, a nonprofit organization focused on vaccine
access.
“Until now, CDC has specific clinical guidance instructing people who
vaccinate that they should not require documentation of health
conditions reported by a person requesting vaccination,” Moore said
in an email.
“For example, if you say you are immunocompromised and need an
additional dose of vaccine, CDC’s guidance has been that you should
document what the patient said and take them at their word,” she
said. “If that were to change, and documentation were require, say,
by pharmacists, then that could complicate Covid-19 vaccine access for
many people whose conditions are not necessarily obvious, but
nonetheless put them at risk.”
Can I get my flu and Covid shot at the same time?
People can get a seasonal flu shot and Covid-19 vaccine at the same
time if they are eligible for each vaccine, .
These vaccines come in separate formulations and packaging. There
isn’t a flu and Covid combination vaccine available yet, but it might
not be too far off; vaccine makers have been developing shots that
combine them to make vaccination more efficient.
Moderna has developed an experimental flu+Covid combination vaccine and
showing that, in adults 50 and older, it was safe and elicited higher
immune responses against influenza virus and the coronavirus compared
with the seasonal flu and Covid-19 vaccines that were licensed at the
time.
Pfizer and BioNTech have teamed up to develop an , starting multiple
clinical trials evaluating updated formulations. Novavax said this year
that it intends to seek a business partner to continue the research and
development of its .
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