Should you get COVID-19 booster now or wait for upgraded shot?

Should you wait to get upgraded COVID-19 booster?

With a new booster that will target both the first strain of COVID-19 and Omicron in the works, should you get a booster now or wait for the new one? According to doctors, it depends.

DETROIT (FOX 2) - Drug makers are working to create a COVID-19 booster vaccine that targets the original strain as well as the Omicron sub-variants.

With that new booster vaccine expected in the future, should you get boosted now or wait?

Dr. Matthew Sims, the director of infectious disease at Beaumont, said there's not an answer that covers all people, and what you should do depends on your circumstances.

"If you are in a high-risk group if you’re older, if you have a serious core mobility, I would say probably a reasonable idea to boost now," he said. "If you are in a lower-risk group, it might be better to wait."

As Omicron variants continue to increase the infection rate, doctors say they do have concerns.

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"Right now there is a rise in hospitalizations, and I read a report that in the older population there’s a rise in deaths," Sims said.

He said the current booster still has benefits and shouldn't be disregarded.

"I think that people’s vaccines are waning, and, again, the booster will help prevent people from getting that sick," Sims said.