CDC Director Dr. Mandy Cohen explains what to know about the updated COVID vaccine

Most Americans should get an updated COVID-19 vaccine, health officials said Tuesday. Advisers to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention endorsed the new shots for everyone 6 months and older and the agency’s director quickly signed off Tuesday on the panel’s recommendation. That means doses should be available this week, some as early as Wednesday. The severity of the COVID-19 pandemic has faded, but there are still hundreds of hospitalizations and hundreds of deaths in the U.S. each week. Hospitalizations have been increasing since late summer, though the latest data indicate infections may be starting to level off, particularly in the South. Still, experts worry that immunity from previous vaccinations and infections is fading in many people, and a new shot would save many lives. According to a survey last month that CDC cited, about 42% said they would definitely or probably get the new vaccine. Yet only about 20% of adults got an updated booster when it was offered a year ago. READ MORE: