FAMILY HEALTHCAST — As we wait to hear if COVID booster shots will be approved for the general public, flu season is coming up and health experts say we should get the flu shot by the end of October.
It could overlap with the period that many people may become eligible for a COVID booster dose. Many people wonder if they can get the COVID vaccine at the same time as the flu shot, and if the side effects will be worse if they do.
The CDC says unless you have a history of strong adverse reactions to vaccines, you can get the coronavirus shot and other vaccines at the same time. That’s a change from a previous recommendation to wait a minimum of 2 weeks.
However, now that hundreds of millions of people have gotten the COVID shots, the agency says we have much more information about them and there’s no reason to wait. In fact, you have the added convenience of only having to make one trip for both.
The practice of vaccinating against different diseases at the same time is not new. Children, particularly infants, often get several vaccines during one visit.
As for possible side effects, the CDC says the side effects are are generally the same when given alone, or with other vaccines.
But there may come a day when two shots won’t be necessary. In April, Moderna, the company that developed one of the messenger RNA coronavirus vaccines, announced plans to create a two-in-one shot.