Covid Vaccine Access May Become Limited
People under 65 might be running out of time to receive their Covid vaccinations.
Health experts are cautioning that the Food and Drug Administration could soon, perhaps as early as Friday, restrict vaccine eligibility for the upcoming 2025–26 formula to only high-risk individuals. This change would mean that younger individuals who are not immunocompromised would likely be unable to get vaccinated, according to these experts.
“If you’re under 65 and not high risk, the window to get a Covid-19 vaccine is right now—before any changes to the FDA label,” epidemiologists Katelyn Jetelina and Hannah Totte noted in their Substack newsletter. “Once it happens, access may be limited immediately (if it isn’t already).”
Their alert has been echoed by other medical professionals predicting that broader access to Covid vaccines may soon be restricted.
“While many individuals have conditions that would classify them as higher risk, making them eligible for the updated vaccine, the FDA may make this list more narrow when they change the label,” Dr. Lucky Tran, a biochemist, shared on X.
However, details on who the FDA will categorize as “high risk” have yet to be disclosed, and representatives from the agency have not responded to inquiries.
Over the past three weeks, Covid cases have surged across much of the United States, particularly concentrated in the West. The CDC reports high wastewater levels for Covid in states like Alaska, California, Hawaii, Texas, Nevada, and Utah, as noted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
In San Francisco, the Covid risk is currently classified as “high,” according to findings from wastewater treatment plants. Meanwhile, rates of influenza and RSV are relatively low.
“We’re stuck in a frustrating limbo created by a government that seems indifferent to vaccinations,” remarked Matt Willis, the former public health officer for Marin County, referencing Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s history of questioning immunizations. “My concern is that the federal delay will result in a later rollout of vaccines that are too limited in scope.”
With the current uncertainty, San Francisco health officials have adopted a careful stance. The Public Health Department is advising residents to keep up with Covid vaccinations, emphasizing that anyone who hasn’t received the 2024–25 vaccine should do so promptly. They recommend two doses for those aged 65 and older or immunocompromised individuals and suggest wearing well-fitted masks in crowded indoor environments and staying home if feeling unwell.
“We’re actively monitoring federal vaccine guidance for the upcoming 2025–26 respiratory virus season,” stated the department.
Kennedy has indeed narrowed access to Covid vaccinations. In May, guidelines were updated to exclude pregnant women and healthy children from the vaccination schedule.
Once new guidelines are established, unused doses of the 2024–25 Covid vaccine will be disposed of by pharmacies, according to Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, an immunology expert at UCSF.
Chin-Hong also expressed concern that even those still eligible may be hesitant to get vaccinated due to confusion over who qualifies.
Recently, on Aug. 19, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommended Covid shots for all children aged 6 to 23 months, a more assertive stance compared to the CDC’s recommendation that leaves the decision to parents and healthcare providers.
Chin-Hong warned that the changes in vaccine rules might lead to increases in Covid-related deaths and hospitalizations among children, highlighting that CDC data shows children under 2 accounted for 57% of pediatric Covid hospitalizations in 2024.
“What often happens is that no one ends up getting vaccinated because people are confused,” Chin-Hong noted about the situation. “It’s usually the vulnerable who get caught up in this confusion.”
