Published: October 20, 2025
The air is getting colder, the days are getting shorter, and activities are moving indoors: Fall is in full-swing, and so is flu and COVID season. Every year, new shots are developed to boost immunity to existing and emerging strains of both viruses, and the federal government reviews and approves these boosters for use. This year, however, that process got complicated, but health experts across the country still recommend getting both shots if you can. Depending on the state, this can be difficult – but Maine’s public health workers made that process significantly easier compared to other places.
At the direction of the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., health experts across every department had their research and public communication heavily restricted – including workers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH). These restrictions worsened over time, leading to confusion across the country as the agency’s critical contributions slowed or disappeared – especially as Fall deadlines approached for vaccination approval and guidelines. In August, the similarly restructured Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the new boosters, but now restricted to only those 65 and older or with select high-risk health conditions. In early September, Kennedy fired both the entire staff of the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) and the director of the CDC, Dr. Susan Monarez. Each state relies on the federal approval process and the guidelines that come from it, using that framework to craft a more unified nationwide public health policy on vaccination. These delays – and the hiring of prominent anti-vaccine voices onto the ACIP – caused what the New York Times called “regulatory chaos.” Private pharmacies like CVS and Walgreens refused to administer the updated COVID-19 booster without a provider’s prescription in 16 states until later in the week, though this relied on each state to develop new policies independent of the federal government.
Now, exact guidance may differ state to state: for example, Florida’s state government moved to remove all vaccine mandates entirely, while health departments in states like Maine issued standing orders that authorize providers to administer the 2025-2026 COVID-19 vaccine without a prescription (in-line with previous years’ guidelines). The American Academy of Pediatrics is an example of the many health professional organizations that have split from current CDC guidelines, arguing that COVID-19 is still “a cause of hospitalization and death in the pediatric population,” and that “COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective in protecting individuals and populations against serious outcomes.” Maine’s CDC recommends that “[a]ll eligible individuals six months and older should receive routine age-appropriate COVID-19 vaccination,” and Maine requires all state-regulated insurers to continue providing full coverage of these vaccines following these recommendations. More information can be found at https://www.maine.gov/covid19.
Vaccines are very safe and highly effective, reducing the chance of infection and greatly reducing the severity of illness, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). You can get both the updated COVID-19 and flu shots at the same time at most clinics, pharmacies, and health providers, though availability may vary at each location. USM’s Health Services offers Fall flu vaccine clinics – its next event on October 23rd, 10 AM to noon, at the Lewiston-Auburn campus – as well as offering vaccination appointments for the flu, MMR, TDAP, and Hepatitis B vaccines.
