The new shots are expected to be available to the public no later than the end of next week, following an official sign-off by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
What’s Different About the New COVID-19 Shots?
KP3.1.1. and KP.3 are closely related to KP.2 — they all belong to a family of variants known as FLiRT, marked by similar mutations. Experts say the updated COVID shots should still be effective, especially compared with the current vaccines.
“The new vaccines are expected to provide much better protection than the ones that are out right now, based on the study that has been done to date,” says Robert Hopkins Jr., MD, the medical director of the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID). “We believe the shots are going to give us better defense as we go into this next year.”
“The vaccine’s superpowers are in preventing serious disease and death,” says Peter Chin-Hong, MD, an infectious disease specialist and a professor of medicine at the University of California San Francisco School of Medicine. “But there is some impact on reducing the risk of infections as well, depending on how closely matched the vaccine is to what is circulating in the community. Because the new vaccines are similar to what is in the community, you might expect to decrease the risk of infection by several weeks. Protection from serious disease may last up to a year or longer, depending on who you are.”
Who Should Get the New Vaccines?
“Children didn’t have as many deaths as other age groups, but they still had far more deaths from COVID than from flu, so I think it’s important that everyone 6 months of age and older get vaccinated,” says Hopkins.
When Should You Get Your COVID Shot?
While many people may want to get immunized as soon as possible to protect against the summer COVID wave, others may prefer to get their COVID shot along with their fall flu shot for convenience. Hopkins notes that some adults may opt to wait on their flu shot until later September or early October to be more assured that protection lasts for the entire flu season, which can extend well into spring.
For people who are at higher risk of severe illness, he advises not to wait, and to get the COVID shots as soon as they become available.
Fewer Than a Quarter of U.S. Adults Got Last Year’s Vaccine
Hopkins warns that these dropping vaccination rates pose a public health threat. “As long as you have the virus infecting people, you’re going to continue to get mutations,” he says. “Less circulation of the virus is going to reduce the development of new variants. If we have a higher vaccinated population, well, then we would at least slow the virus from mutating.”
How Much Will the Vaccine Cost?
Although the out-of-pocket price for a vaccine is about $130, according to Dr. Chin-Hong, the vaccine should be free for most people — covered by private insurance, Medicaid, or Medicare.
Everyday Health follows strict sourcing guidelines to ensure the accuracy of its content, outlined in our editorial policy. We use only trustworthy sources, including peer-reviewed studies, board-certified medical experts, patients with lived experience, and information from top institutions.
Sources
- FDA Approves and Authorizes Updated mRNA COVID-19 Vaccines to Better Protect Against Currently Circulating Variants. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. August 22, 2024.
- Novavax Continues to Work With the U.S. FDA on Authorization of 2024–2025 Formula COVID-19 Vaccine. Novavax. August 22, 2024.
- Percent Positivity of COVID-19 Nucleic Acid Amplification Tests (NAATs) in the Past Week by HHS Region — United States. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. August 10, 2024.
- Variant Proportions. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. August 17, 2024.
- COVID-19 Vaccine Basics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. July 12, 2024.
- Staying Up to Date With COVID-19 Vaccines. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. July 3, 2024.
- People With Certain Medical Conditions and COVID-19 Risk Factors. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. June 24, 2024.
- Havers FP. Laboratory-Confirmed COVID-19–Associated Hospitalizations Among Adults During SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.2 Variant Predominance — COVID-19–Associated Hospitalization Surveillance Network, 14 States, June 20, 2021–May 31, 2022. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. August 26, 2022.
- Adult Coverage and Intent. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. May 11, 2024.
- About the Vaccines for Children (VFC) Program. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. June 26, 2024.
Don Rauf
Author
Don Rauf has been a freelance health writer for over 12 years and his writing has been featured in HealthDay, CBS News, WebMD, U.S. News & World Report, Mental Floss, United Press International (UPI), Health, and MedicineNet. He was previously a reporter for DailyRx.com where he covered stories related to cardiology, diabetes, lung cancer, prostate cancer, erectile dysfunction, menopause, and allergies. He has interviewed doctors and pharmaceutical representatives in the U.S. and abroad.
He is a prolific writer and has written more than?50 books, including Lost America: Vanished Civilizations, Abandoned Towns, and Roadside Attractions. Rauf lives in Seattle, Washington.