The New COVID Shots Are Approved and Turning 65 Decides If You Qualify

The FDA approved four updated COVID-19 vaccines on August 28. Whether a reader can get one without an argument comes down to a single number, which is whether they have turned 65.

What Was Approved

The four vaccines come from three manufacturers. Pfizer-BioNTech’s Comirnaty is approved for ages 5 and older. Moderna’s Spikevax covers 6 months to 64 with qualifying conditions, and 65 and up outright. Moderna’s lower dose mNEXSPIKE covers 12 to 64 at high risk, and 65 and up. The Novavax-Sanofi Nuvaxovid is approved for 12 and older.

All four target the JN.1-lineage XFG subvariant for the 2026-27 season. Shots are expected in pharmacies and healthcare settings very soon.

The Line the Approvals Drew

For anyone 65 and older, approval is blanket. No condition needs to be documented and no case needs to be made.

Under 65, eligibility requires an underlying condition that raises the risk of severe illness. The qualifying list is broad and includes asthma, diabetes, obesity, physical inactivity, pregnancy, cancer, immune deficiency, some mental illnesses and various heart and lung diseases.

Why the Under 65 Rules Are Unsettled

Approval is one thing and coverage is another. Private insurers key their coverage decisions off recommendations from the CDC’s vaccine advisory committee, and that committee is currently in disarray.

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. replaced the 17 member panel with 8 new members plus others. A federal judge then temporarily suspended 13 of Kennedy’s appointees and voided their earlier votes, leaving the panel in limbo.

What That Means at the Pharmacy Counter

A 66 year old walks in and gets the shot. A 63 year old with asthma is approved to receive it but is walking into an unsettled coverage picture, and should confirm the cost with their plan before the appointment rather than after.

The approvals are final and the doses are coming. What has not been resolved is who pays for them below 65, and that answer depends on a committee a court has partially suspended.

References: Updated COVID shots are approved. Getting one may not be simple