Recommendations for Fully Vaccinated People
COVID-19 Homepage
COVID-19 Vaccines for People Who Are Moderately or Severely Immunocompromised
COVID-19 vaccine recommendations have been updated as of October 3, 2023. The content on this page is no longer current and will be updated to align with the new recommendations. Learn more.
- CDC recommends the 2023–2024 updated COVID-19 vaccines.
- Everyone aged 6 months and older who is moderately or severely immunocompromised needs at least one dose of 2023-2024 updated Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine. Depending on the number of Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna doses you’ve previously received, you may need more than one dose of updated vaccine:
- If you have not gotten any COVID-19 vaccines (not vaccinated), you should get 3 doses of updated COVID-19 vaccine.
- If you got 1 previous Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine you should get 2 doses of updated COVID-19.
- If you got 2 or more previous Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines, you should get 1 updated COVID-19 vaccine.
- Talk to your healthcare provider about getting additional doses of updated COVID-19 vaccine.
Recommendations For People Aged 6 Months and Older Who Are Moderately or Severely Immunocompromised
People Who Have Not Had Any Previous COVID-19 Vaccines (Not vaccinated)
People aged 6 months and older who are moderately or severely immunocompromised and not vaccinated should get 3 doses of the same brand of updated COVID-19 vaccine. They also may be able to get additional doses.
To find COVID-19 vaccine locations near you: Search vaccines.gov, text your ZIP code to 438829, or call 1-800-232-0233.
People Who Got Previous COVID-19 Vaccines
People aged 6 months and older who are moderately or severely immunocompromised and got COVID-19 vaccines before September 12, 2023 should get 1 or 2 doses of updated COVID-19 vaccine, depending on your age and the number of doses you got previously.
Pfizer-BioNTech
People Aged 6 Months and Older
Moderna
People Aged 6 Months and Older
Novavax
People Aged 12 Years and Older
Johnson and Johnson’s Janssen
People Aged 18 Years and Older
J&J/Janssen COVID-19 vaccine is no longer available for use in the United States as of May 6, 2023.
COVID-19 Vaccines: 2023-2024 Updated, (Bivalent), and Original
2023–2024 updated COVID-19 vaccines
As of September 12, 2023, the updated Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines were recommended by CDC for use in the United States.
The 2023–2024 updated COVID-19 vaccines more closely target the XBB lineage of the Omicron variant. We anticipate the updated vaccines will be better at fighting currently circulating variants.
Novavax’s updated COVID-19 vaccine is currently under review by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for emergency use authorization (EUA) in individuals aged 12 and older.
2022 –2023 bivalent vaccines
As of September 11, 2023, the bivalent Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines are no longer in the United States.
The 2022–2023 bivalent vaccines were designed to protect against both the original virus that causes COVID-19 and the Omicron variants BA.4 and BA.5. Two COVID-19 vaccine manufacturers, Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna, had developed bivalent COVID-19 vaccines.
Original vaccines
As of April 18, 2023, the original Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines are no longer available for use in the United States.
As of May 6, 2023, J&J/Janssen COVID-19 vaccine is no longer available for use in the United States.
Previous COVID-19 vaccines were called “original” because they were designed to protect against the original virus that causes COVID-19.
Who Is Moderately or Severely Immunocompromised?
Some people are immunocompromised (have a weakened immune system) due to a medical condition or because they received medications or treatments that suppress the immune system. You can self-attest to your moderately or severely immunocompromised status, which means you do not need any documentation of your status to receive COVID-19 vaccines you might be eligible to receive.
Getting Vaccines If You Recently Had or Currently Have COVID-19
If you recently had COVID-19, you still need to stay up to date with your vaccines, but you may consider delaying your vaccine by 3 months.
Reinfection is less likely in the weeks to months after infection. However, certain factors could be reasons to get a vaccine sooner rather than later, such as:
- personal risk of severe disease,
- risk of disease in a loved one or close contact,
- local COVID-19 hospital admission level,
- and the most common COVID-19 variant currently causing illness.
People Who Were Vaccinated Outside of the United States
Learn more about the recommendations for people vaccinated outside of the United States.