PHOENIX — Many Arizona pharmacies now have the COVID-19 vaccine in stock, but that doesn’t mean it will be easy to get a booster shot this fall.
The ABC15 Investigators spot-checked Valley pharmacies on Sunday. Our team found COVID-19 booster shots available at many locations.
However, multiple pharmacy employees said the vaccines could only be administered with a prescription to people who are either 65 or older or have underlying conditions.
Those rules could change after the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Policy (ACIP) meets later this month to discuss recommendations for COVID-19 vaccines. The CDC, under Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. has been reevaluating decades of U.S. vaccine policy.
ACIP recommendations on COVID-19 boosters could impact the price and availability of the vaccine in Arizona.
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"It could be a lot easier, or a lot more difficult, to get this vaccine than it is today," said Will Humble, executive director of the AZ Public Health Association, "and it could also change whether your health insurance plan is going to pay for it or not."
Several governors are not waiting for the CDC committee to act. They are making their own state recommendations to ensure the immunizations will be widely available.
Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs, a Democrat, was still weighing her options this week.
"I'm certainly concerned about new guidance coming out around protections for COVID," Hobbs told reporters on Wednesday. "We're going to look at the options we have to keep Arizonans safe."
You can reach ABC15 Senior Investigator Melissa Blasius by email at melissa.blasius@abc15.com or call 602-803-2506. Follow her on X (formerly Twitter) @MelissaBlasius or Facebook.
