Evidence-based answers to frequently asked questions about COVID-19 vaccines.
ATAGI recommends waiting 3 months after a confirmed COVID-19 infection to get your next COVID-19 vaccine or booster dose.
It’s possible to catch COVID-19 more than once. The protection you gain from having had COVID-19 may not protect you from getting it again.
The latest COVID-19 subvariants BA.4 and BA.5 can reinfect people who have previously had COVID-19 as quickly as 4 weeks after their initial infection.
Studies show that the immunity created by COVID-19 vaccines begins to wane over time.
For most people aged 16 and over, two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine are not enough to provide strong protection against severe illness.
A booster dose helps to strengthen your immune system and improve your long-term protection against serious illness from the COVID-19 virus. A booster can strengthen your protection against serious illness by up to 95%, and if you've had three doses of a COVID-19 vaccine you have 65% greater protection against hospitalisation or death from Omicron than if you've only had two vaccine doses.
COVID-19 vaccines protect against the SARS-COV-2 virus, and flu vaccines protect against the Influenza A and Influenza B viruses.
The COVID-19 vaccine won’t protect you against flu, and the flu vaccine won’t protect you against COVID-19 so you still need to get both vaccines.
While the vaccines may not always stop you catching COVID-19 or flu, they do reduce the severity and length of illness. They’re also very effective at reducing the chance you will need to be admitted to hospital.
Staying up to date with vaccinations is one simple step you can take to protect yourself against flu and COVID-19.
Even though COVID-19 in children is often milder than in adults, there’s significant evidence to support vaccinating children.
Children aged 5 and over are eligible for COVID-19 vaccination.
From 5 September, vaccination is also recommended for children aged 6 months to under 5 who are severely immunocompromised, have a disability, or have complex and/or multiple health conditions which increase the risk of severe COVID-19.
If they are infected with COVID-19, some children will end up with severe lung infections, become very sick and need to be hospitalised. Children can also suffer from long COVID-19 symptoms that affect their health and wellbeing into the future.
For children, the risk of serious harm from a COVID-19 vaccine is less than the risk from a general anaesthetic or taking penicillin for an infection.
Children are important members of our community with many social contacts. When children are vaccinated, they can play a part in helping to limit the spread of COVID-19. By getting vaccinated, your family will help protect the most vulnerable in our community, including other young children who are immunocompromised or not eligible for vaccination yet.
Looking ahead, making sure as many people as possible are vaccinated, including our children, will help reduce the amount of COVID-19 virus that is in the community. This, in turn, can reduce the chance that COVID-19 will mutate into new variants that might be even more dangerous, especially to young people.
The vaccines teach your immune system to recognise and fight the COVID-19 virus. This means if you encounter the virus after vaccination, your immune system can tackle it faster and more effectively, helping to protect you from severe illness.
When you get a COVID-19 vaccine, it usually takes a few weeks for the body to build immunity. In the long-term, only the immune cells that have been trained to recognise COVID-19 will remain in your system, not the vaccine itself.
None of the approved COVID-19 vaccines in Australia contain the live COVID-19 virus. This means they cannot give you COVID-19.
Vaccines are a safer and more consistent way to gain protection than recovering from a COVID-19 infection.
Vaccines provide added protection for people who have already had COVID-19 or flu and reduce the chance they will be reinfected. For people who are reinfected, vaccines reduce the severity of their illness.
One study showed that people who already had COVID-19 but have not been vaccinated after their recovery are more than twice as likely to get COVID-19 again than those who finish their recommended doses after recovery.
Extensive evidence from other countries has shown mRNA COVID-19 vaccines, such as Pfizer and Moderna, are safe if you’re pregnant, breastfeeding or trying for a baby.
By getting vaccinated, you also protect your baby. There is evidence that the antibodies your body produces after being vaccinated can be passed to your baby in cord blood and breastmilk.
Approval of COVID-19 vaccines for people who are pregnant and breastfeeding came after the vaccines were approved for the general population, because conclusive data was needed to show the vaccines are safe and effective.
If you’re pregnant and become infected with COVID-19, you’re at greater risk than someone who is not pregnant. This means it’s even more important for you to get vaccinated if you’re planning to get pregnant or are currently pregnant. If you are infected with COVID-19 while pregnant you have:
The Australian Government's COVID-19 vaccination – Shared decision making guide for women who are pregnant, breastfeeding or planning a pregnancy provides answers to questions about COVID-19 vaccinations.
Speak to your doctor or midwife if you have concerns about being vaccinated.
The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), which is responsible for regulating prescription medicines and vaccines for use in Australia, will only approve vaccines that are safe and effective.
The TGA ensures that there are rigorous assessment and approval processes for all vaccines. This includes reviewing impacts of vaccines on fertility.
The TGA has undertaken all necessary processes and has approved AstraZeneca, Moderna, Pfizer and Novavax for use in Australia.
Myocarditis is inflammation of the heart muscle. Pericarditis is inflammation of the outer lining of the heart. Myocarditis is where these two conditions occur together.
Myocarditis or pericarditis occurs very rarely in young people including adolescents and children 12 years and older who have had the COVID-19 Pfizer or Moderna vaccines.
Data from the USA (with data reported through to 11 June 2021) shows that the rate of myocarditis or pericarditis in female adolescents aged 12–17 years was 9.1 per million doses (0.0009%), and in male adolescents of the same age, 66.7 per million doses (0.006%) of an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine given.
The symptoms of myocarditis or pericarditis can appear within a few days of vaccination and are usually mild. Most children and adults with myocarditis or pericarditis related to COVID-19 vaccination recover quickly after a short period of monitoring, with no treatment or simple pain relief.
Symptoms can include chest pain, irregular heartbeat, skipped beats or a fluttering sensation, shortness of breath, or pain with breathing. If a child or adult experiences any of these symptoms, they should seek prompt medical attention.
It’s important to note that there could be other causes for these symptoms. In young adults, 3-8 cases of myocarditis and pericarditis that are NOT related to COVID-19 vaccination occur each week in Australia.
The rate of myocarditis and pericarditis is higher in people with COVID-19 than after a COVID-19 vaccine.
Years of research into similar viruses such as the coronaviruses that cause severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) helped scientists develop safe COVID-19 vaccines.
Viruses similar to the one that causes COVID-19 aren’t new, and this work was underway for a long time before the COVID-19 pandemic.
For the COVID-19 vaccines, researchers around the world ran important processes like planning, development and implementation side-by side, instead of one after the other. This was possible with unprecedented global funding, to ensure that scientific testing and approval steps were all completed.
All of the COVID-19 vaccines available in Australia have been approved for use by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), which checks vaccines for safety, quality and effectiveness.
Vaccinated people have less chance of catching and spreading COVID-19.
Two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine, followed by a booster reduces your risk of serious COVID-19 infection by up to 95%.
Because people whose COVID-19 vaccinations are up to date are less likely to infect others, you’re protecting people who are more vulnerable to disease or who can’t be vaccinated yet.
Being vaccinated for COVID-19 also dramatically reduces your risk of needing to go to hospital, and this limits the stress on our hospital system, helping to keep hospitals open for those who need them for other reasons.
COVID-19 can cause serious illness, medical complications and can unfortunately lead to death in some people.
Older adults or people with existing medical conditions are at greater risk of becoming seriously ill with COVID-19.
By comparison, the risk of serious harm from a COVID-19 vaccine is less than the risk from a general anaesthetic or taking penicillin for an infection.
The COVID-19 vaccines approved in Australia do not contain egg or animal products and are suitable for people of all religions and faiths.
The Vaccine Clinic Finder is the best way to find and book a COVID-19 vaccine appointment.
You can also call the National Coronavirus Helpline on 1800 020 080 for assistance or SMS “Hey EVA” to 0481 611 382. These messages are received by the National Coronavirus Helpline. You will receive a call back from a trained agent who will help you find a COVID-19 vaccine appointment based on your individual needs. This includes finding places where no appointment is needed (walk ins).
For COVID-19 vaccination assistance in your language, call the National Coronavirus Helpline on 1800 020 080 and choose option 8 for free interpreting assistance.
