Doctor says getting multiple vaccines at once is safe

GREEN BAY, Wis. (WBAY) - It’s that time of year when many people are getting their flu shots and other vaccines, like the updated COVID-19 and new RSV vaccines. Some people are wondering if it’s safe and effective to get all three shots at once.

We spoke with a doctor at Bellin Health who says it really comes down to personal preference. If you want to get multiple vaccines at once to be efficient and get it over with, that’s safe. If you’d rather space them out, that’s OK too.

Reactions to vaccines can include sore muscles or a low-grade fever. Those are fairly common symptoms that can happen even after getting just one shot.

If you’re concerned about having a reaction, you could get each vaccine separately.

Doctors say some patients have expressed concerns about the effectiveness of the shots when getting several at once.

“There may be a slight reduced immunization effect on the body if they get all three at one time, but I don’t think it’s clinically significant. I think you still get adequate response to prevent infection,” Dr. Robert Mead said.

Doctors do say people seem to be having less severe reactions to the COVID-19 vaccine. One reason for that is because many people already have some immunity to COVID-19 now, so the vaccine doesn’t trigger as much of an immune response.

Copyright 2023 WBAY. All rights reserved.