Californians who didn’t get their COVID vaccine last fall should get it now and not wait for the updated vaccine later this year, state health officials said, because COVID is surging now but is expected to circulate at lower levels this coming winter.
For the second consecutive year, COVID infections are peaking much higher in the summer compared to the winter, according to state data on test positivity and wastewater surveillance. COVID activity began ticking up in June, climbed steeply in July and has continued to climb in August.
COVID hospital admissions are also increasing, though they remain at relatively low levels overall
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Meanwhile, the state public health department is forecasting lower levels of COVID this coming winter.
For that reason, officials say, residents who haven’t yet gotten their 2025-26 COVID vaccine — which many people get in the fall, at the same time they get their flu shot — should go ahead and get it now, and not wait for the updated 2026-27 COVID vaccine to come out. That way, they’ll be more protected when the virus is circulating at higher levels.
“Summer is really the bigger peak, so if you do have patients or loved ones who have not gotten the 2025-2026 vaccine, it is still effective and highly recommended, given the surge we’re starting to see this summer,” California Public Health Officer Dr. Erica Pan said Tuesday during a briefing with medical professionals. “Go ahead and get it now, given the surge.”
Nationally, just 18% of U.S. adults had gotten the 2025-26 COVID vaccine as of February, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
The currently available COVID vaccines, for 2025-26, target the LP.8.1 variant (Pfizer and Moderna mRNA vaccines) or JN.1 strain (Novavax vaccine).
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The updated COVID vaccines (for 2026-27) will target the XFG variant, the current predominant strain circulating in the U.S. XFG is an offshoot of JN.1
The current vaccines provide protection against the XFG variant as well, though they are not specifically matched to it
