Updated COVID Vaccine Approved: What To Know, How To Get One In MD

MARYLAND — Federal regulators have approved an updated COVID-19 vaccine to better target recent strains of the virus contributing to a summer illness surge in Maryland and other U.S. states.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Thursday granted emergency use authorization for the latest mRNA vaccines, which were reformulated to focus on a newer omicron variant known as KP.2, or FLiRT. The approval of this year's vaccine came a little earlier than in previous years, as most of the country is experiencing increased viral activity.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is recommending this fall’s shot for everyone age 6 months and older. And though different omicron strains such as KP.3.1.1 are also spreading — and may become more common in the fall and winter — health officials said the variants are closely related enough for the 2024-25 COVID vaccines to ensure cross-protection.

When will the vaccines be available, and when should I get one?

Pfizer and Moderna are set to begin shipping millions of doses while a third U.S. manufacturer, Novavax, expects its modified vaccine version to be available a little later.

CVS is offering appointments for the new vaccine now, and Walgreens has appointments available beginning Sept. 6. Vaccinations are also available through pediatricians and other physicians, hospitals, local health departments, and pharmacies.

Federal officials are currently updating vaccines.gov, an online tool designed to find vaccination sites. The tool will be restored once the 2024-25 COVID-19 vaccines become widely available.

Dr. Robert Hopkins Jr. of the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases said skipping this new vaccine is “a hazardous way to go,” because even if your last infection was mild, your next might be worse or leave you with long COVID symptoms.

Hopkins advised that people at high risk from COVID should schedule vaccinations once shots are available in their area, as long as they have not been sick with the virus in the past three months, or had another COVID vaccine in the past two months. This high-risk group includes older adults, people with weak immune systems or other serious medical problems, nursing home residents and pregnant women.

Healthy adults and children "can get vaccinated anytime," Hopkins said, adding that these people could wait until the fall — when local pharmacies and doctor's offices have more doses, and people could potentially get a flu shot at the same time they receive the updated COVID vaccine.

Vaccine coverage is waning nationwide, with only 22.5 percent of U.S. adults currently protected by the 2023-24 COVID vaccine that rolled out in September 2023, according to CDC data. Vaccine protection increased by age group, with the highest coverage among adults 75 and older.

Much of the country, including Maryland, is experiencing a summer bump in COVID-19 cases, according to updated wastewater surveillance data from the CDC.

Communities can use sewage samples to track the presence of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, as a data point to anticipate any spikes locally.

As of the latest update on Aug. 22, wastewater viral activity for COVID-19 is at a "very high" level nationally. Maryland is also at a "very high" level, according to data.

"It is not unusual for there to be fluctuations in COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, and deaths over time," Ruhland said. "But due to effective vaccinations and treatments, as well as the evolution of the virus, COVID-19 has become a much less severe illness for most of the population, and the number of hospitalizations and deaths have dropped dramatically since the height of the pandemic."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.