Which vaccines are recommended for American adults?

As updated COVID-19 boosters and flu shots become available, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that all adults receive these vaccinations to ensure they have the most up-to-date protections against these diseases.

Though these immunizations get plenty of attention, they’re just two of many vaccines and immunizations that adults are advised to receive.

Which vaccines should adults get?

The CDC recommends that all adults get three routine vaccines: COVID-19, influenza, and Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria, and whooping cough) or Td (tetanus and diphtheria). The agency also advises adults to stay up-to-date on various vaccines at different ages:

How have flu vaccination rates changed over time?

Flu vaccination rates for adults hovered between 38.8% and 43.6% from 2010–2017 and reached a recent low of 37.1% in 2017–2018. The 2020-2021 flu season had the highest vaccination rate, at 50.2% of adults.

However, all age groups received the flu vaccine at lower rates in 2021–2022 than in 2019–2020 — 35.2% of adults ages 18-49 were vaccinated against the flu in 2021–2022.

During the 2022-2023 flu season, 46.9% of all adults in the US received a flu vaccine, according to CDC data.

Flu vaccine rates by state

Estimates of state-level flu vaccine rates in the 2022–2023 season ranged from 34% in Idaho to 62.4% in Massachusetts.

COVID-19 vaccination rates

By the end of the federal government’s pandemic state of emergency in May 2023, 92.3% of adults in the US had received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, and 79.1% had completed the primary series of the vaccine.

How many adults are up to date on COVID-19 vaccines?

By the end of the pandemic state of emergency in May 2023, 20.5% of all adults in the US were considered up-to-date on the COVID-19 vaccine. The CDC considered adults up-to-date if they received one dose of the updated (bivalent) booster.

COVID-19 vaccination rates by state

By May 2023, the percentage of adults who have received the updated (or bivalent) booster dose of COVID-19 vaccines in the US ranged from 8.6% in Mississippi to 38.6% in Vermont.

Hepatitis B vaccination rates

In 2018, 30% of US adults reported being fully vaccinated against hepatitis B, a virus that affects the liver and is spread by infected bodily fluids. The CDC made a new recommendation in April 2022 that all adults from 19 to 59 years old get vaccinated against hepatitis B.

Hepatitis B vaccination rates are much higher among children — above 90% — as nearly every state requires it to attend public school.

Rates for additional vaccines for older adults

The CDC recommends that adults over 50 get vaccinated for shingles and adults over 65 get vaccinated for pneumococcal pneumonia.

In 2021, 32.6% of adults 50 and over had received a shingles vaccine, according to the CDC, including 41.1% of adults 60 and over. That same year, 65.8% of US adults over 65 had received a pneumococcal vaccine.

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