COVID-19 Vaccines Advice

COVID-19 advice for the public: Getting vaccinated

English version last updated on 4 August 2023.

Why get vaccinated against COVID-19?

The emergency phase of COVID-19 is over, but the virus continues to spread and evolve. COVID-19 remains a threat, especially to older persons and adults with underlying health conditions.

Safe and effective vaccines help ensure that COVID-19 does not result in severe disease and death. Vaccination protects against COVID-19 and reduces the likelihood of new variants from emerging.

Take all COVID-19 vaccine doses, including booster doses, as recommended to you by your health authority.

COVID-19 vaccines are safe.

Strict precautions are in place to help ensure the safety of all COVID-19 vaccines.

Before receiving validation from WHO and national regulatory agencies, COVID-19 vaccines must undergo rigorous testing in clinical trials to prove that they meet internationally agreed benchmarks for safety and efficacy.

Unprecedented scientific collaborations, extensive prior research and substantial public funding enabled swift COVID-19 vaccine development to be completed in record time – while maintaining high safety standards.

As with all vaccines, WHO and regulatory authorities continuously monitor the use of COVID-19 vaccines to identify and respond to any safety issues that might arise. Through this process, we establish that COVID-19 vaccines remain safe worldwide.

Read more on the safety of COVID-19 vaccines:

Who should get vaccinated and boosted?

On March 2023, WHO’s Strategic Advisory Group on Immunization (SAGE) updated the recommendations on COVID-19 vaccination in the context of the circulating Omicron variant and high population immunity.

The updated recommendations outline three priority groups for COVID-19 vaccination: high, medium, and low. The recommendations are summarized below.

Further details are in this document: WHO SAGE Roadmap for prioritizing uses of COVID-19 vaccines (March 2023)

High priority group

Includes:

Older adults;
Younger adults with significant comorbidities (e.g., diabetes and heart disease) or severe obesity;
People, including children aged 6 months and older, with serious immunocompromising conditions (e.g., transplant recipients, patients on immunosuppressive treatment; cancer patients);
Pregnant persons;
Frontline health workers.
For this group, WHO recommends receiving the primary series, first booster and additional booster doses 6 or 12 months after the last dose, depending on factors such as age and immunocompromising conditions.

Medium priority group
Includes:
Healthy younger adults - adults without comorbidities under the age of 50 to 60 years (age thresholds depend on countries);
Children and adolescents with severe obesity or comorbidities that put them at higher risk of severe COVID-19 infection.
For this group, WHO recommends the primary series and first booster dose.
Additional booster doses are not routinely recommended. However, health authorities may consider giving additional boosters doses when the benefits are warranted and there are no known safety issues. Countries may also offer additional booster doses in the routine programme based on population risks, disease epidemiology or health priorities.
Low priority group
Includes:
Healthy children and adolescents ages 6 months to 17 years

Vaccinating this group has limited public health impact. Countries could consider vaccinating healthy children and adolescents with the primary series based on disease burden, cost-effectiveness and other health or program priorities and opportunity costs.

Getting vaccinated: Specific advice

WHO-recommended COVID-19 vaccines are safe for most people 6 months years and older, including those with pre-existing conditions, including auto-immune disorders. These conditions include hypertension, diabetes, asthma, pulmonary, liver and kidney disease, and chronic infections that are stable and controlled.
Of note, not all COVID-19 vaccines are licensed for children. Please check the age indication in the product-specific recommendations.
Take whatever vaccine is made available to you, even if you have already had COVID-19. It is important to be vaccinated as soon as possible. It is safe and effective to mix and match different COVID-19 vaccines.
If you are pregnant, want to get pregnant in the future or are currently breastfeeding, getting vaccinated is important to protect you and your family. Many people around the world have now been vaccinated against COVID-19 while pregnant or breastfeeding, and no safety concerns have been identified for them or their babies.

A single booster dose during pregnancy – if more than 6 months have passed since the last dose, protects both the pregnant woman and the foetus while helping to reduce the likelihood of hospitalization of infants for COVID-19.

You should not be vaccinated if:
- You have a history of severe allergic reactions/anaphylaxis to any of the ingredients of the COVID-19 vaccine.
- You have a fever over 38.5ºC on the day of your vaccine appointment. Postpone until you have recovered.
- You currently have confirmed or suspected COVID-19. Wait until you have completed the mandated isolation period and your acute symptoms have passed to get vaccinated.
If you are on blood thinners, it is safe for you to get vaccinated, but let the person vaccinating you know.

What to expect after getting vaccinated

Some people will experience mild side effects after being vaccinated against COVID-19. Common side effects of COVID-19 vaccines include fever, head or body aches and a sore arm. These symptoms usually go away within a day or two and, if needed, can be managed by getting some rest, drinking fluids, or taking pain-relieving medications.
Contact your healthcare provider if you are worried about any of the side effects that you are experiencing.
More serious or long-lasting side effects after COVID-19 vaccines are extremely rare. If you experience difficulty in breathing, chest pain, confusion, loss of speech or mobility after your vaccine, contact your healthcare provider immediately. Vaccines are continually monitored to detect and respond to rare adverse events.
It takes several weeks after each dose of the COVID-19 vaccine for your body to develop maximum levels of immunity – you are not protected right away. We still don’t know exactly how long protection from COVID-19 vaccines lasts, but most people have strong protection against serious illness and death for at least 6 months.
It is still possible to get COVID-19 and spread it to others after being vaccinated, so continue to do everything you can to keep yourself and others healthy. Continue following the advice of your health authorities. Wash your hands regularly and cover coughs and sneezes.

If you do get COVID-19 after vaccination, you are more likely to have mild or no symptoms than if you hadn’t been vaccinated.