Vaccination FAQ

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Note: This information is based on currently available evidence, resources, information, emergency use authorization, and expert opinion, and is subject to change.

Where can I get a COVID-19 vaccination? (Last reviewed 3/6/23)

Is photo identification required for COVID-19 vaccination? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

Where can I find data on the COVID-19 vaccines used in Virginia? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

Why am I being asked for my insurance information if the COVID-19 vaccine is free? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

How do I or my eligible children get the vaccine if we are disabled? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

Why should we get vaccinated against COVID-19? (Last reviewed 2/28/23)

Can Long COVID be prevented or treated by COVID-19 vaccination? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

How do I learn more about COVID-19 vaccines if I speak a different language? (Last reviewed 2/8/23)

¿Cómo puedo obtener más información sobre las vacunas contra COVID-19 si hablo un idioma diferente? (Última actualización 2/8/23)

. كيف يمكنني معرفة المزيد عن لقاحات COVID-19 إذا كنت أتحدث لغة مختلفة؟ (آخر تحديث 18/3/21)

다른 언어를 사용하는 경우 COVID-19 백신에 대해 자세히 알아보려면 어떻게 해야 합니까? (최신 업데이트 21년 3월 18일)

Paano ko malalaman ang higit pa tungkol sa mga bakuna ng COVID-19 kung magsasalita ako ng ibang lahi? (Huling binago noong 3/18/21)

如果我说的是另一种语言，如何了解有关新冠（COVID-19）疫苗的更多信息？（最后更新日期：2021 年 3 月 18 日）

How was the safety and efficacy of the updated (bivalent) COVID-19 boosters tested? (Last updated 2/27/23)

The updated COVID-19 vaccines are also called “bivalent” boosters because they are made from two different variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19.

The safety of the bivalent Moderna and Pfizer booster doses was shown using data from human clinical trials using Omicron BA.1 bivalent vaccines. The BA.1 bivalent vaccine side effects were similar to side effects seen after the primary series and original booster doses. No new safety concerns were identified.

The efficacy of the bivalent Moderna and Pfizer booster doses was shown by meeting pre-specified immunogenicity objectives in terms of serum antibody levels.

Clinical trials are currently underway for the bivalent BA.4/BA.5 Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccines.

On November 4, Pfizer and BioNTech announced updated clinical data for their Omicron BA.4/BA.5-adapted bivalent booster, showing substantially higher immune response in adults compared to the original COVID-19 vaccine.

The bivalent booster produced about 4-fold higher antibody titers against Omicron BA.4/BA.5 sublineages compared to the original COVID-19 vaccine in individuals older than 55 years of age.
A month after getting a bivalent booster dose, Omicron BA.4/BA.5 antibody titers increased 13.2-fold from pre-booster levels in adults older than 55 years of age and 9.5-fold in adults 18 to 55 years of age, compared to a 2.9-fold increase in adults older than 55 years or age who received the original booster vaccine.
Safety and side effects of the bivalent booster remain similar to the original COVID-19 vaccine.

In November 2023, Moderna announced that both of its bivalent booster vaccines against Omicron variants (one that targets BA.1 and the other targeting BA.4/5) produce a better antibody response than its original vaccine when used as a booster.

In a Phase 2/3 study, a booster dose of bivalent vaccine produced high antibody response against Omicron BA.4/BA.5 variants when compared to the same dose of monovalent booster in 511 participants who had previously been vaccinated and boosted.
Both bivalent vaccines also showed robust neutralizing activity against Omicron subvariant BQ.1.1.
The frequency of side effects with the bivalent boosters were similar to or lower than that of either a second or third dose of the original vaccine.
No new safety concerns were identified after three months of follow-up.

What is mRNA, and how does it work to provide protection? (Last reviewed 3/2/23)

What is the current status of the Johnson and Johnson (Janssen) viral vector COVID-19 vaccine? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

What is known about the recently available Novavax COVID-19 vaccine? (Last reviewed 3/6/23)

What is an FDA Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for a vaccine? (Last reviewed 3/6/23)

How is a vaccine’s full FDA approval and licensing different from an FDA Emergency Use Authorization (EUA)? (Last reviewed 3/6/23)

Where can I find information on the Pfizer- BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine? (Last reviewed 3/6/23)

Where can I find information about the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine? (Last reviewed 3/6/23)

Where can I find information about the Johnson & Johnson (also known as J&J and Janssen Biotech) COVID-19 vaccine? (Last reviewed 3/6/23)

Where can I find information about the Novavax COVID-19 vaccine? (Last reviewed 2/8/23)

Can I get another vaccine at the same time as getting a COVID-19 shot? (Last reviewed 2/28/23)

Should pregnant or breast-feeding individuals get a COVID-19 vaccine? (Last reviewed 2/28/23)

Yes. Getting COVID-19 vaccine during pregnancy can protect you and your fetus and infant from severe illness from COVID-19.

Currently and recently pregnant people are more likely than non-pregnant people to get severely ill if they get COVID-19. Pregnant women with some underlying health conditions, such as diabetes or obesity, are at even greater risk. Having COVID-19 disease while pregnant has been associated with stillbirths, preterm birth, low birth weight babies, and other adverse outcomes of pregnancy. A study showed that infants whose mothers received two doses of COVID-19 vaccine during pregnancy were 61% less likely to be hospitalized in their first six months of life compared to infants of unvaccinated mothers.

The CDC, VDH, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), and the Society for Maternal Fetal Medicine (SMFM) all recommend that pregnant or breast-feeding women or other women who intend to get pregnant and who otherwise are eligible for COVID-19 vaccination should be COVID-19 vaccinated and then stay up to date with vaccination. The most recently updated ACOG recommendations are available and a joint message about COVID-19 vaccination from ACOG and SMFM is also available.

CDC and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have several vaccine safety monitoring systems in place to collect and study information about vaccination during pregnancy and continue to closely monitor that information. Results from CDC’s v-safe voluntary after-vaccination health check system, with public data that is updated weekly, show that a large number of women who received COVID-19 vaccines have had pregnancies, with no vaccine-specific safety issues identified.

In addition, CDC has established a specific v-safe COVID-19 Vaccine Pregnancy Registry to learn more about these issues and initial data from this registry show similar vaccine side effects for pregnant and non-pregnant individuals. The most up to date numbers are available.

How is COVID-19 vaccine safety being monitored? (Last reviewed 2/8/23)

The safety monitoring of COVID-19 vaccines has been described as “the most comprehensive of any vaccine in US history.”

CDC and FDA continuously monitor the safety of vaccines.These agencies use at least five different systems to monitor vaccine safety:

The Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS): VAERS is an early warning system that helps CDC and FDA identify potential problems following vaccination. Anyone can and should report possible vaccine side effects to VAERS. However, most of the VAERS monitoring is done by U.S. healthcare providers providing anonymous data from hundreds of millions of patients being vaccinated. This system alerts the CDC and FDA if healthcare systems begin reporting unusual patterns of adverse effect information about events that occur after vaccinations.

NOTE: every healthcare provider who administers COVID-19 vaccines is required to report all serious health events occurring soon after vaccination to the VAERS system even if it seems clear that the death was not related to the vaccine. VAERS is therefore set up as an early warning system to collect as much data as possible about any and all events that may or may not turn out to be side effects of vaccines. Those data are then examined closely to verify the events and to identify any clusters or groups of unexpected serious or severe post-vaccine events. Because the data submitted to - and made publicly available by - VAERS has not yet been verified, the VAERS system clearly cannot determine whether a vaccine caused any specific side effect. VAERS is NOT - and is NOT INTENDED TO BE - a reliable source of information on vaccine side effects. Therefore, drawing conclusions from these publicly available but unverified VAERS screening data alone without the follow-up investigations is scientifically and ethically inappropriate because it is likely to lead to erroneous conclusions.

A description of how VAERS works is available.

The Vaccine Safety Datalink (VSD): a collaboration between CDC and nine health care organizations around the United States, which allows ongoing monitoring and proactive searches of vaccine-related data.

The Clinical Immunization Safety Assessment (CISA) Project: a partnership between CDC and several medical centers that conducts clinical research on vaccine-associated health risks.

V-safe is a cell phone-based CDC system that individual COVID-19 vaccine recipients can use to notify CDC if they develop any side effects. Each vaccinated person should download a v-safe app onto their cell phone as soon as they receive the vaccine. Instructions on how to download and use v-safe will be given out when you get the vaccine. v-safe will also remind you about getting your second vaccine dose.

Additional vaccine safety monitoring systems, such as the use of National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) data, and continued monitoring through clinical trials are also utilized to ensure the safety of COVID-19 vaccines.

What is known about deaths that are reported to occur after COVID-19 vaccination? (Last reviewed 3/7/23)

FDA REQUIRES EVERY VACCINE PROVIDER to report EVERY death that occurs after a COVID-19 vaccination to the VAERS reporting system. These death reports by vaccine providers are REQUIRED even if it seems clear that the death was not related to the vaccine. The details of every death are investigated by CDC and FDA staff as soon as possible after these are reported.

Given the absolute requirement to report EVERY death in a vaccine recipient, regardless of its apparent cause, reports of deaths and other adverse events to VAERS following vaccination can not be interpreted to mean that a vaccine caused these problems. In fact, drawing ANY conclusions from the numbers of reported but unverified deaths in the VAERS system is scientifically inappropriate.

COVID-19 vaccines are being given to hundreds of millions of people in the United States. Many COVID-19 vaccine recipients have pre-existing illnesses or are elderly and frail and are thus already at higher risk of death whether or not they get vaccinated. Therefore, a small percentage of people receiving COVID-19 vaccine are likely to die from natural causes soon after being vaccinated. As discussed in the article, “VAERS data must be interpreted with caution due to the inherent limitations of passive surveillance. VAERS is primarily a safety signal detection and hypothesis generating system. Generally, VAERS data cannot be used to determine if a vaccine caused an adverse event. VAERS data interpreted alone or out of context will lead to erroneous conclusions about cause and effect as well as the risk of adverse events occurring following vaccination.”

Every death that occurs after COVID-19 vaccination is investigated. With a single exception, an ongoing review of available clinical information, including death certificates, autopsy, and medical records, has not established any causal link between any of these deaths and COVID-19 vaccines.

NOTE: The single exception noted is that reports have indicated a plausible causal relationship between the J&J/Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine and TTS, a rare and serious adverse event—blood clots with a low platelet count—which has caused less than a dozen deaths. Get the latest safety information on the J&J/Janssen vaccine here.

Additional information on investigation of deaths reported after COVID-19 vaccination can be found on the CDC website.

What are common short term side effects of the current COVID-19 vaccines (including the bivalent boosters)? (Last reviewed 3/7/23)

Short term vaccine side effects fall into one of three categories:

(1) Local reactions, at or near the injection site

(2) Systemic reactions (such as fever, chills, headache, or muscle aches)

(3) Allergic reactions

This FAQ response addresses the local and systemic side effects. Allergic side effects are addressed in a later question and response. Although COVID-19 vaccination will help protect you from getting COVID-19 disease, you may have some short term local or systemic side effects from the vaccination, which are normal signs that your body is building protection against COVID-19.

Some vaccinated adults and children have had local reactions such as pain, redness, or tenderness at the injection site. A small number of vaccine recipients have had transient systemic side effects such as fatigue, nausea, chills, fever, headache or other body aches for a few days. These local or systemic side effects do NOT mean that the vaccine has given you a COVID-19 infection. Rather, these expected side effects mean that the vaccine is causing your body’s immune system to react and create antibodies to fight off the virus that causes COVID-19 if you are exposed in the future.

Some vaccine recipients have experienced swollen glands (lymph nodes). For the two mRNA vaccines, these expected side effects are more common in younger people than older people and are more common after the second dose than after the first dose.

Less commonly, a few people have reported redness, swelling, and itching around the injection site beginning a few days or in the second week after their first vaccine dose. However, these local reactions are not considered to be allergic reactions and are not a risk for anaphylaxis when getting a second dose. Individuals with such delayed injection site reactions after the first mRNA COVID-19 vaccine dose should get the second dose using the same vaccine product as the first dose and at the recommended interval, and preferably in the opposite arm. More information is available about these uncommon “COVID arm” reactions.

As happens occasionally with other vaccines such as influenza vaccine, fainting soon after injection has also been noted among a small number of COVID-19 vaccine recipients, especially among adolescents and other young adults. This kind of short term reaction after the first injection of a two-dose or three-dose COVID-19 vaccine series is also not a reason to avoid the second dose or any later booster doses when eligible.

For young children, the side effects seen after vaccination were similar to those seen in older children.

Finally, even if you or your child experience one or more of these expected short term side effects after the first dose of mRNA COVID-19 vaccine, it is very important that you still receive the second primary series dose a few weeks later - as well as all recommended booster doses - for the vaccination process to be effective.

What should I do if I or any of my vaccinated children get any of these common COVID-19 vaccine reactions? Are there medicines we can take to prevent or minimize any of these side effects? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

How can I find out about serious adverse events reported after COVID-19 vaccinations? (Last reviewed 3/8/23)

Information on possible vaccine adverse events (side effects) continues to be collected and studied by CDC, FDA, and other groups, using multiple systems to collect the data.

One serious but rare adverse effect that has been identified is a blood clotting problem that has occurred in a very small number of people vaccinated with the Johnson & Johnson (J&J) (Janssen) vaccine. It occurs at a rate of less than four (4) cases per million Janssen vaccine doses and has resulted in a small number of deaths. When that problem was first noted in early April 2021, use of that vaccine was stopped while it was further studied. After deciding that the vaccine’s known and potential COVID-19 prevention benefits outweighed its known and potential risks, the FDA and CDC recommended resuming its use in the United States.

However, because of a later risk-benefit analysis of post-vaccination blood clotting disorders, the FDA has now limited the use of the J&J COVID-19 vaccine to individuals 18 years and older for whom other authorized or approved COVID-19 vaccines are not accessible or clinically appropriate and who would otherwise not receive a COVID-19 vaccine. For more information, visit Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine Overview and Safety.

To date, very few blood clotting problems in people who received an mRNA COVID-19 vaccination (Moderna or Pfizer) have been reported to VAERS. Based on available data, this number is not greater than the background rate of this problem and there is not an increased risk of this kind of problem after mRNA COVID-19 vaccination.

There have been rare reports of myocarditis or pericarditis among people ages 30 and younger who received COVID-19 vaccine. Most patients responded well to rest and quickly recovered. More information on this topic can be found on CDC’s Myocarditis and Pericarditis After mRNA COVID-19 Vaccination webpage.

CDC and FDA are monitoring reports of Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS) in people who have received the J&J/Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine. GBS is a rare disorder where the body’s immune system damages nerve cells, causing muscle weakness and sometimes paralysis. Most people fully recover from GBS, but some have permanent nerve damage. These cases have largely been reported about 2 weeks after vaccination and mostly in men, many 50 years and older.

Given the ongoing risk of serious complications, hospitalizations, and even deaths (including deaths of children) from COVID-19 illness, and given the rarity of serious adverse effects, CDC and VDH continue to strongly recommend being up to date, including with the bivalent COVID-19 vaccine booster, on COVID-19 vaccination.

For additional information about rare, but serious side effects, visit the CDC page at Selected Adverse Events Reported after COVID-19 Vaccination.

Is COVID-19 vaccine likely to have an important impact on reproduction? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

No. Significant effects on reproduction have NOT been seen and are unlikely to occur after COVID-19 vaccination.

Sometimes people who are concerned about vaccines or vaccination raise a wide range of various reproduction and fertility questions as part of their concerns.

First, there is no genetic material in any of the current COVID-19 vaccines so there is no risk of a COVID-19 vaccine changing the DNA of any vaccine recipient or that person’s children.

Studies have been published about temporary post-vaccination changes in women’s menstrual cycles. However, short-term changes in menstrual cycles can occur associated with almost any stress, infection, weight changes, dietary changes (including a diet high in soy), excess exercise, or sleep problems. A review of the vaccine-menstrual cycle study data and a summary of the overall vaccine-menstrual cycle question are both available. None of these studies suggested any impact on fertility and, not surprisingly, similar reports about changes in duration and flow of menstrual cycles have been noted after COVID-19 illness.

Also, people now using hormonal birth control (pills, patch, ring, implant, etc.) can receive any of the current COVID-19 vaccines.

One recent study found no increase in the risk of miscarriages in the pregnancies of fully vaccinated women.

As noted elsewhere, there is no reason to withhold COVID 19 vaccine from women who are intending to get pregnant, are currently pregnant, are post-partum, and/or are breastfeeding. Getting a COVID-19 vaccine prior to or during pregnancy can protect you, your fetus, and your infant from severe COVID-19 illness.

In summary, no negative fertility effects have been found for any current U.S. COVID-19 vaccine and there is no biologic reason to suspect that COVID-19 vaccines might have an effect on female or male fertility.

A review of the safety of COVID-19 vaccines in terms of fertility and sexual function was published in the Scientific American magazine.

For people who are considering COVID-19 vaccination at the same time they are considering having a baby, additional useful information can be found on CDC’s COVID-19 Vaccines While Pregnant or Breastfeeding webpage.

How do I register myself or my child for V-safe? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

When should I or my child get the second dose of a two-dose or three-dose primary series of a COVID-19 vaccine? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

For currently available COVID-19 vaccines, what is the difference between being “Up to Date” and being “fully vaccinated”? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

Will being up to date against COVID-19 reduce the risk that we could infect others if we get infected with COVID-19? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

Where can I find travel guidance, for travel outside the United States? (Last reviewed 3/6/23)

Should I have a COVID-19 serology (antibody) test to be sure that the COVID-19 vaccine is working to protect me? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

Is there guidance available for people vaccinated with COVID-19 vaccines not authorized in the United States? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

What’s the difference between a COVID-19 vaccine booster dose and an additional primary series vaccine dose? (Last reviewed 3/6/23)

A vaccine booster dose is a COVID-19 vaccine dose administered to someone who initially had good protection from the primary vaccine series or from an earlier booster dose, but in whom this protection may have weakened over time. Having the most recently recommended COVID-19 vaccine booster dose ensures that you are staying up to date with vaccination. As of the review date noted above, the currently recommended booster dose is the updated bivalent Pfizer or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine booster.

Information on accessing a COVID-19 booster dose can be found at vaccinate.virginia.gov.

An additional primary series dose is an extra COVID-19 vaccine dose administered to someone with a moderately or severely weakened immune system because their initial immune response after completing the primary vaccine series may have been insufficient to provide them with strong protection.

A 3-dose primary series is recommended for people ages 5 years and older who are moderately or severely immunocompromised at the time of vaccination. The same mRNA vaccine product should be used for all three doses of the primary series. The 3rd (additional) dose is administered at least 4 weeks after the second dose.

For moderately or severely immunocompromised people ages 18 years and older who received a primary Janssen vaccination, a second (additional) dose using an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine is recommended at least 4 weeks later.

Those people who receive an additional dose because they are immunocompromised will also be eligible for a recommended vaccine booster dose (when they also meet the age and time requirements for a booster). As of the review date noted above, the currently recommended booster dose is the updated bivalent Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine booster.

PLEASE NOTE: The FDA has limited the use of the Johnson and Johnson (J&J) COVID-19 vaccine for individuals 18 years and older whom mRNA COVID-19 vaccines are not accessible or clinically appropriate and who would otherwise not receive a COVID-19 vaccine. People who are starting their COVID-19 vaccine series should get either Pfizer or Moderna mRNA COVID-19 vaccines or should get Novavax vaccine. Booster doses should be given with the updated (bivalent) Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccine. Because of an updated risk-benefit analysis of post-vaccination blood clotting disorders, CDC recommendations now state that, in most situations, Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, or Novavax COVID-19 vaccines are now preferred over the Johnson and Johnson (Janssen) COVID-19 vaccine. Please see Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine Overview and Safety.

See the CDC COVID-19 Vaccination Schedule or COVID-19 Vaccine Schedule (Immunocompromised).

Do booster dose recommendations mean that the COVID-19 vaccines are not working? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

Do I need to show proof of prior vaccination, to get a COVID-19 booster dose in Virginia? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

What is hybrid immunity? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

After a natural SARS-CoV-2 infection, how long can I wait to get a COVID-19 vaccine booster dose? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

How should healthcare providers administering the COVID-19 vaccine report this information back to VDH? (Last reviewed 2/8/23)

I work in a doctor’s office, pharmacy, or other healthcare office. Can I administer the COVID-19 vaccine at my practice? (Last reviewed 2/8/23)

As a healthcare provider, how can I learn more about the vaccines and administering them? (Last reviewed 2/8/23)

How can healthcare providers or health departments request a consultation for a complex COVID-19 vaccine safety question? (Last reviewed 2/8/23)

How should healthcare providers report vaccine administration errors? (Last reviewed 2/8/23)

Do vaccine providers need to document proof of a qualifying condition before administering an additional primary dose of an mRNA vaccine? (Last reviewed 2/8/23)

How will additional primary vaccine doses and booster doses be recorded? (Last reviewed 2/8/23)

How does my long-term care facility (LTCF) obtain the bivalent vaccine? (Last reviewed 3/7/23)

What is VDH doing to help connect LTCFs to the new bivalent vaccines? (Last reviewed 3/7/23)

Will CVS and Walgreens be offering booster vaccines to LTCFs as previously provided through the Federal pharmacy partnership program? (Last reviewed 3/7/23)

How can a LTCF access COVID-19 vaccine for their residents and staff if the facility does not have a pharmacy agreement in place? (Last reviewed 3/7/23)

Am I able to order and receive vaccines to administer at my facility? (Last reviewed 3/7/23)

How do I encourage my LTCF staff to get vaccinated? (Last reviewed on 3/7/23)

If a facility is experiencing a COVID-19 outbreak, can a planned COVID-19 or other vaccine booster clinic proceed as scheduled? (Last reviewed 3/7/23)

How will the VDH Office of Licensure and Certification (OLC) be surveying nursing homes with respect to the current COVID-19 vaccination up to date definition? (Last updated 3/7/23)

Will I be required to provide proof of age at my child’s COVID-19 vaccination appointment? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

What side effects are common in the youngest children (6 months through 5 years) after vaccination? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

How do I register my child for V-safe? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

I am concerned about my child’s risk of myocarditis and pericarditis from COVID-19 vaccination. Why should I consider vaccinating my child? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

My child is on the cusp (edge) of an age group for which a different COVID-19 vaccine formulation is recommended. Where can I find guidance on which dose they should receive? (Last reviewed 3/6/23)

Should my child get the 2-dose Moderna series for children 6 months through 5 years or the 3-dose Pfizer series for children 6 months through 4 years? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

Will Virginia public schools require my child to get vaccinated against COVID-19? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

Why should I get my child vaccinated? (Last updated 3/8/23)

Is an additional primary series dose of a COVID-19 vaccine recommended for people with weakened immune systems? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

Yes, an additional primary series dose is recommended for many but not all immunocompromised people.

After completing their primary vaccine series, moderately or severely immunocompromised people should get an additional primary series shot.

The additional dose should be administered at least 28 days after the second dose of either the Pfizer, Moderna, or Novavax vaccine; or at least 28 days after the single initial dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

The single exception is for children from six (6) months to five (5) years old who received the three-dose Pfizer-BioNTech primary vaccine series. Their third primary series vaccine dose also counts as the additional dose for immunosuppressed people.

The additional primary series dose should be with the same mRNA vaccine as the primary series.
For J&J (Janssen) vaccine recipients, the additional dose should be any mRNA COVID-19 vaccine.

However, even those people with weakened immune systems who receive an additional dose of an mRNA vaccine still might not have strong protection against COVID-19 after vaccination. These individuals should speak to their healthcare provider about planning for additional prevention measures. They should also have a plan of action in place if they become ill with COVID-19 like symptoms, including having a plan for testing, and the need for early treatment if infected. In areas where the COVID-19 Community Level is high or medium, people at increased risk should wear a mask or respirator that provides them with greater protection, like an N95 or KN95, and may choose to avoid nonessential indoor activities.

Their household members, friends, and other close contacts who are vaccine-eligible should get up to date on COVID-19 vaccination, including with the updated bivalent vaccine booster, to help provide maximal protection to their immunocompromised loved ones and colleagues.

The American College of Rheumatology has guidelines around vaccination timing for people with autoimmune and inflammatory conditions as well as recommendations for which medications should be paused when patients get the vaccine. Other guidance is available from the International Organization for the Study of Inflammatory Bowel Disease , and the American Society of Transplantation and other transplantation groups. The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society has released a set of COVID-19 FAQs.

Finally, immunocompromised individuals should receive all the recommended COVID-19 vaccine booster doses when eligible (including the bivalent booster). See the CDC COVID-19 Vaccine Schedule (Immunocompromised) .

Will I need to show proof that I have a moderate or severe immunocompromising condition to get the additional dose? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

How do I obtain a copy of my or my child’s COVID-19 vaccine record? (Last reviewed 3/7/23)

What if I cannot find a COVID-19 Vaccination Record? (Last reviewed 2/8/23)

What if my COVID-19 Vaccination Record is incorrect? (Last reviewed 3/7/23)

What is the VDH COVID-19 Vaccination Record with QR Code? (Last reviewed 2/28/23)

What information is in my COVID-19 Vaccination Record with QR Code? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

Am I required to get a COVID-19 Vaccination Record with QR code? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

How does the COVID-19 Vaccination Record with QR code protect my privacy? (Last reviewed 2/27/23)

How can I obtain a COVID-19 Vaccination Record with QR code for myself or my child? What about records of vaccinations other than COVID-19? (Last reviewed 3/7/23)

Am I required to show my vaccination record to anyone? (Last reviewed 2/28/23)

I just received a COVID-19 vaccination dose. When will this show up in my COVID-19 Vaccination Record with QR code? (Last reviewed 3/7/23)

How can businesses and employers use the COVID-19 Vaccination Record with QR Code to verify the vaccination status of their patrons or employees? (Last reviewed 3/7/23)

Can I verify or test the QR code of my COVID-19 Vaccination Record myself? ? (Last reviewed 3/7/23)

Non-immunocompromised Individual	Immunocompromised Individual	Recorded in Vase+, VAMS, and PrepMod as:
Primary Series #1	Primary Series #1	First Dose
Primary Series #2	Primary Series #2	Second Dose
Booster #1	Primary Series #3	Third Dose
Booster #2	Booster #1	Fourth Dose
	Booster #2	Fifth Dose

TOP FAQs

Additional Languages:

Vaccination: How To Get the COVID-19 Vaccine

Vaccination: Why Get Vaccinated Against COVID-19

Vaccination: Vaccine Development + Safety

Vaccination: Side Effects and Adverse Events After COVID-19 Vaccine

Vaccination: Staying Up to Date with COVID-19 Vaccinations

Vaccination: Natural Immunity

Vaccination: Healthcare Providers

Vaccination: Long-Term Care Facilities

Vaccination: Children

Vaccination: People with Weakened Immune Systems

Vaccination: Records