I have received 7 Covid vaccinations (Pfizer and Novavax) during the time period of March 2021 through September 2025. I also got a Covid (probably Omicron) breakthrough infection in January 2023.
The stuff I’m reading online has me confused. Some sources say that by this point I have enough hybrid immunity from all those shots and the infection, and says 7 is already a lot more shots than most other people get, that I should be good to go and need no further boosters. Other sources say Covid is just like flu now, in the sense that an annual flu shot is needed.
I usually react quite badly, physically, to the Covid shots, which have effects I can feel for days. Should I scale back down to, say, one booster every two years instead of one?
At the vaccine clinic at my work last year, they were giving the flu shot to anyone who asked, and the covid shot to anyone who had a preexisting condition that put them in a high-risk group. There was no actual enforcement of that; you just had to check off a box that says “I have a condition that makes me high risk”, and they were sort of encouraging folks to just check off that box… but, well, I don’t.
Note that the CDC recommendation to provide COVID shots only to those in high-risk groups was made at the behest of RFK Jr, a proud vaccine skeptic. I’ll leave you to decide if you think it was made for scientific or political reasons. Most medical organizations continue to recommend that everyone get one annually.
You have to make your own choices, but in my view, this is less about lying on a form and more about advocating for my health. My preexisting condition is knowing when RFK Jr is full of shit and gaslighting me.
Sometimes a little civil disobedience is justified.
The general recommendation for 65+ is twice a year, 6 months apart. Those with other medical conditions can generally say so and receive dosing on the 65+ schedule. I don’t lie, just state my medical conditions.
I requested the current covid booster at my recent physical exam. The doctor said they don’t have them. Not a small office either; affiliated with Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center.
The 2026-27 booster won’t be available for another month or two, and the 2025-26 is no longer being produced, so it’s not surprising they are currently out. Check back in October.
You’d rather risk your health, or the health of anyone you live with or come into contact with, than disobey RFKjr’s pulled-out-of-his-ass directive??? Lying on a form such as that one is completely irrelevant, as was his directive. Don’t let him take away your health rights.
Having had covid twice now, I don’t want a third bout. One wiped me out for a week, and took about 3 weeks to get 100% back. Once I thought it was a persistent cold and if I had waited another day I would not have even gone to the doctor about my “cold.” And no one wants long covid. That is truely nasty according to the few people I know that had it.
The vaccine is not foolproof but pretty effective. I’m also 99% sure the science shows that vaccinated folks who still get covid have much milder cases.
The flu vaccine is kind of a crap shoot since there are so many different kinds of flu, and it’s an educated guess for which flu types to include in vaccine. That said, a barely noticeable shot vs being sick for a week is a no-brainer in my book. YMMV
I was just chatting with our local CVS pharmacist as I was getting my flu vaccine. She said they just got word that they’ll be receiving the newest Covid vax in a few days. We should be able to get that vax in a week or two. We’re in the Silicon Valley area, if that’s relevant.
I get the impression that COVID is the new ‘flu’. That is, they’ll formulate new shots every year and roll them out around the same time as flu shots prior to flu/covid season. I also suspect that like flu shots, they’ll be largely hit or miss in terms of efficacy as it’s difficult to predict what form/variant will take hold in a given season. That’s my layperson’s impression at any rate.
I’m seeing some chatter that there have been issues with getting Medicare, whatever part they file it under, to pay for the new COVID vaccines if you get them at a pharmacy. Getting it at a clinic or your doctor’s office may be simpler for (generic) you.
Covid is similar to flu in that it mutates from year to year and vaccine immunity wanes. So there’s real value in getting an annual booster. But, also like flu, you have a ton more immunity than anyone did when it was brand new.
If you want to avoid getting it, or want to minimize the seriousness of you do get it, it’s worth getting the new vaccine when it comes out.
@Chronos , in my state, anyone can get it by state law. But the conditions accepted by the CDC cover something like half the population, and include being overweight, i think also being depressed, being sedentary, and a lot of other stuff. You don’t have to have a serious medical condition to qualify.
On the other hand
That’s a serious cost. I have the same issue, and i discussed it with my doctor last year. He said, “your husband was just diagnosed with cancer, you need to get all the vaccines”. So i did. And i will this year, too. But perhaps you don’t live with anyone who is immune compromised. If you are otherwise healthy, don’t have prior lung damage, and aren’t old or fat, it’s reasonable to skip some vaccines. You might want to wear a mask in crowded places during the peak infection season.
FWIW, most of Europe doesn’t routinely vaccinate healthy adult every year for flu, either.
(But i get the flu shot. Because the first year i got it, everyone else in my family caught the flu, and i didn’t, and that was amazing. And I’ve never had a worse reaction to the flu shot than a slightly sore arm. Anyone who doesn’t have a nasty reaction to the covid vaccine should get it, imho.)
I am one who has suffered horribly for at least 3 days each time I’ve received a COVID vax. I had to gird my loins each year to get one.
I got the newest one today. I had read that side effects were lessened with this new formulation, and I am happy to report that so far, this seems to be true!
Usually by now, nearly 12 hours post-shot, I am suffering with chills, fever, nausea, headache, body aches and a feeling like someone gave me a karate chop to the back of the neck. I am currently suffering none of that. There is a tiny bit of body soreness and I’m a little itchy at the injection site. That’s it.
The pharmacy tech who administered the injection today mentioned that the Pfizer formulation was for only 3 mil, while the Moderna formulation is for 5 mil. Maybe that’s part of the reason this shot is so much better on the side effects, I don’t know. I always get Pfizer, and this is the first time it hasn’t brought any side effects to speak of.
Hope this information helps people to choose to get their vax this year.