COVID-19 vaccine

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted full use authorization for the following COVID-19 vaccines:

• The Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, for people 18 years of age and older (2 doses, administered 21 days apart, are needed)
• The Pfizer-BioNTech (Comirnaty) COVID-19 vaccine, for people 16 years of age and older (2 doses, administered 21 days apart, are needed)

According to the FDA, “the public can be very confident that this vaccine meets the high standards for safety, effectiveness, and manufacturing quality the FDA requires of an approved product.”

The FDA has granted emergency use authorization for the following COVID-19 vaccines:

• The Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, for people between the ages of 6 months and 15 (2 doses for people 5 and older; 3 doses for children younger than 5)
• The Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, for children between 6 months old and 5 years old (2 doses)
• The Johnson & Johnson (Janssen) vaccine, for people 18 years old and older (1 dose needed)

The number of COVID-19 vaccine doses children younger than 5 need depends on the type of vaccine the child receives.

• Pfizer vaccine: 3-shot regimen, with the first two shots given between 3 and 8 weeks apart and the last shot given at least 2 months later
• Moderna vaccine: 2-shot regimen given between 4 and 8 weeks apart

According to the FDA, caregivers should feel comfortable getting either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine for a child.

Resources for parents or guardians of children eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), everyone 5 years and older should get a COVID-19 booster dose about 5 months after completing your primary COVID-19 vaccination series².

• People 5 and older are eligible to get a Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine booster
• People 18 and older are eligible to get a Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna booster dose

The CDC recommends a second booster of either Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine at least 4 months after the first booster.

Use the Louisiana Department of Health (LDH) online service to:

• Determine vaccine eligibility
• Find a list of locations where the COVID-19 vaccine is available in Louisiana
• Get information about no-cost transportation services

The Louisiana Department of Health also has a COVID-19 hotline. Call 1-855-453-0774 for more information.

Call us at 1-800-448-3810 (TTY: 711), Monday – Friday, 7 a.m. – 7 p.m., for help:

• Finding a testing or vaccination location in your community
• Scheduling and setting up transportation to the appointment