Covid-19 vaccination substantially lowered risks for children last season, CDC report says [View all]

Source: CNN Health

Updated Dec 11, 2025, 2:41 PM ET
PUBLISHED Dec 11, 2025, 1:20 PM ET


Children who were vaccinated against Covid-19 last season had a “substantially lower risk” of emergency department and urgent care visits related to the virus, according to a report published Thursday by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The vaccines were about 76% effective in preventing these outcomes among healthy children ages 9 months to 4 years and about 56% effective among children ages 5 to 17 compared with those who did not receive an updated vaccine for the 2024-25 respiratory virus season, the report said.

The federal analysis was based on data from about 98,000 children who tested positive for Covid when they visited an emergency department or urgent care between late August 2024 and early September 2025. Visits were captured from 250 emergency departments and urgent cares across nine states that participate in a research collaboration that the CDC is involved in.

Outcomes for children who received the updated vaccine for the 2024-25 respiratory virus season were compared with those who had not received the latest shot but may have had earlier series.

Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2025/12/11/health/covid-vaccine-children-cdc