11 Vaccinations You Need—and Aren’t Getting

Think fast: When’s the last time you’ve had a booster shot? If it feels like it’s been a while, you’re not alone. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), a majority of U.S. adults have not received age-appropriate vaccinations. 

“People often think that if they’ve had all their shots as a kid, that’s it, but that’s not true,” says Susan Besser, MD, MBA, a family physician with Mercy Medical Center in Baltimore.

Childhood vaccine schedules have greatly reduced the toll of infectious diseases, but 2025 research published in the journal Vaccines highlights why adult vaccination is more important than ever:

• People are living longer—and some immunizations lose effectiveness over time. 
• Immunosenescence, the age-related decline in immune responsiveness, means that as life expectancy rises, booster doses are necessary for sustained protection. 
• A rise in chronic disease puts unvaccinated people at a higher risk of complications from infectious diseases. 
• Several vaccine-preventable diseases have emerged or re-emerged over the past decades. 
• Some adults may have missed certain vaccines that are in the modern vaccination schedule. 

“Remember what vaccines are for in the first place, to protect our population from a heavy death toll on communicable diseases that we can otherwise prevent,” says Ahmad Garrett-Price, MD, board-certified family medicine physician at GP Health. “No matter how you feel about vaccinations, don’t make your decisions based on myth or message boards. Remember, too, that vaccines aren’t just about protecting you, they’re mainly there to protect the vulnerable: the elderly and children.”

Expert doctors say these are the booster shots you should ask your doctor about:

1. Pertussis (whooping cough)

Whooping cough may seem like a disease from ancient times, but data show that cases are surging today. An April 2025 report from The British Medical Journal says that there were 6,600 cases of whooping cough in the first three months of 2025—four times more than the same period in 2024, and 25 times as many compared to the start of 2023. “If the current trend continues, the country will be on course for the highest number of infections since vaccination was introduced in 1948,” the report states. 

“We used to think that if you were immunized as a child, you’d be fine, but it turns out your immunity wanes as you age,” explains Dr. Besser. It’s now recommended that adults get a pertussis booster shot every 10 years, she says. 

The disease itself may not be more than a bothersome condition for a healthy adult—“it must just be annoying, like a cough that just won’t go away,” says Dr. Besser. But The BMJ report reminds us that pertussis is one of the world’s deadliest infectious diseases, particularly for children under age 5. That’s why it’s strongly advised that expectant parents and caregivers receive a booster shot. It’s especially important for pregnant women, as they can pass along short-term protection to their babies.

2. Tetanus

Tetanus is caused by a bacterial infection that enters the skin through a cut and affects the nervous system. Because it can develop from something as minor as a pinprick or animal scratch, according to the CDC, experts recommend a booster shot every 10 years. 

Here’s some good news: your tetanus shot also protects against whooping cough, says Dr. Besser. “People don’t realize it’s not just tetanus in the shot, but you can also get protected from pertussis in the same vaccine,” she says.

3. Flu

According to the CDC, there were 266 pediatric deaths due to the flu over the 2024-2025 season—and 89% of those deaths occurred in unvaccinated children. “That’s when you can directly see the positive correlation between vaccinations and disease prevention,” says Dr. Garrett-Price. 

The flu can be deadly for adults, too. The CDC estimates that during the 2024-2025 season, the flu caused up to:

• 130,000 deaths
• 1.3 million hospitalizations
• 37 million medical visits
• 82 million illness cases

Importantly, vaccination prevented nearly 10 million flu-related illnesses and 7,900 deaths during the 2023-2024 season, per CDC estimates. And this is in spite of relatively low coverage: only 55% of children and 45% of adults got a flu shot during this period. 

Because so many cases and deaths are preventable, the CDC urges everyone to get a flu vaccine each year. “It takes six weeks to develop immunity, so get it early before flu season starts,” Dr. Besser recommends. However, doctors also say it’s better to get it late than not at all, so if you missed a peak window, it’s still worth making an appointment to get it.

4. RSV

Like whooping cough, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) can feel like just another cold in healthy adults—but it can cause dangerous complications in older adults and infants. In 2023, the first RSV vaccine was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and data from the first season after this rollout show it offers compelling protection. A December 2024 study published in JAMA Network Open found the vaccine to be 86% effective in preventing RSV-related hospitalizations in at-risk adults. 

The CDC recommends that the following groups receive a dose of the RSV vaccine:

• All adults aged 75 and older.
• Adults ages 50 to 74 with an increased risk of severe RSV (such as those with a chronic health condition). 
• Pregnant women between weeks 32 and 36 of pregnancy, to pass protection on to their baby.

5. Hepatitis

Hepatitis A and B vaccines are a part of the routine childhood vaccination schedule, but only since the mid-1990s. That means people born before then should talk to their doctor about getting immunized against these highly contagious viruses, says Erich M. Sturgis, MD, MPH, a board-certified head and neck surgeon at Baylor College of Medicine who specializes in cancer. This is especially true for people with cancer risk factors, as hepatitis B can increase your risk of getting certain types of cancer, he explains. 

Another group that needs to be vaccinated for hepatitis is people with diabetes, according to the CDC. Whether type 1 or type 2, diabetes can make it harder for your immune system to fight infections. Even if the condition is well-managed, people with diabetes have more than double the risk of a hepatitis B infection.

6. Meningitis

There are many types of meningitis, including bacterial, viral, fungal, and parasitic varieties. While not all are severe, some strains are extremely contagious and deadly, sometimes causing death within just a few hours. There aren’t vaccines for every strain, but two vaccines cover the most serious ones: the meningococcal and Hib vaccines. 

“The good news is that there is a vaccine that protects against the bacteria responsible for most cases of meningitis, but the bad news is that because it wasn’t widely available until 1987, most adults haven’t received it,” says Robert Hamilton, MD, a board-certified pediatrician based in Santa Monica, California. 

And according to the CDC, rates of meningococcal disease have increased sharply in recent years. In 2024, 503 cases were reported—the highest number in more than a decade. Meningitis is most commonly diagnosed in:

• Babies
• Teens and young adults aged 16 to 23 years old
• Adults aged 65 and older

7. If you’re between 27 and 45: HPV

Human papillomavirus (HPV) is a common sexually transmitted infection, with roughly 14 million new infections each year, according to the Cleveland Clinic. There are more than 100 different types of HPV—many of them harmless—but certain strains are linked to cervical, vaginal, penile, anal, and other cancers. 

That’s why routine HPV vaccination is recommended for children (usually at ages 11 to 12) and for anyone through age 26 who wasn’t fully vaccinated when younger. “The HPV vaccine is a whole different way of looking at vaccines because it’s our first cancer-killing vaccine,” says Dr. Besser. “It may pave the way for others in the future.”

In 2018, the FDA expanded HPV vaccine approval to include adults ages 27 to 45. The American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists explains that it’s not recommended for everyone in this age range, but advises unvaccinated women to talk to their health care provider to determine if they’d benefit from HPV vaccination. 

8. If you’re 50 or older: Shingles

If you’ve had chickenpox, it can reactivate later in life and cause shingles—a viral infection that causes a painful rash and can lead to nerve damage and other complications, according to the Cleveland Clinic. 

The CDC estimates that one in three people will get shingles in their lifetime, but the vaccine is 90% effective in preventing it. Still, only 31.6% of American adults have been vaccinated, according to 2024 research published in Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics. 

Because shingles tends to occur later in life, the CDC recommends that all adults over age 50 get Shingrix—a two-series vaccine given six months apart. This is true even if:

• You’ve already had shingles.
• You received the first-generation shingles vaccine, Zostavax.
• You’ve been vaccinated against chickenpox. 

Plus, the shingles vaccine may reduce your risk of heart problems, according to new research. 

9. Varicella (chickenpox)

If you were born before 1995 and don’t remember having chickenpox as a child, the CDC recommends you ask your doctor about the chickenpox (varicella) vaccine. 

This is because before the mid-1990s, almost everyone caught chickenpox as a kid—and once you’ve had it, you’re immune for life (though remember: the virus can reactivate and cause shingles). Since the chickenpox vaccine was introduced in 1995, cases have dropped by nearly 90%, according to the Cleveland Clinic.

Even with this progress, the CDC says about 150,000 people get chickenpox each year—and it can be much more dangerous in adults. The Cleveland Clinic notes that complications can include bacterial infections, encephalitis (inflammation of the brain), pneumonia, dehydration, blood clotting issues, and liver problems. 

That’s why the CDC recommends adults without “evidence of immunity” get the varicella vaccine. This evidence of immunity includes:

• Documentation of vaccination.
• A confirmed history of chickenpox (verified by a healthcare provider or by laboratory analysis). 
• U.S.-born before 1980—this is considered presumptive evidence of immunity and does not apply to certain groups, including healthcare workers, childcare workers, immunocompromised individuals, and pregnant women. 

It’s also important to note that the shingles vaccine does not protect against chickenpox. Adults who have never had chickenpox should receive the varicella vaccine first, followed by the shingles vaccine. 

10. If you’re over 50: Pneumonia

In October 2024, the CDC lowered the recommended age for the pneumococcal vaccine to age 50. “That’s the segment of the population that’s most vulnerable to serious complications from pneumonia,” Dr. Garrett-Price says.

Younger adults at higher risk—such as those with chronic diseases—are also advised to get vaccinated. (Read why our senior health editor, only in her late 30s, recently got the pneumococcal vaccine.)

This vaccine offers long-term protection, and it doesn’t just defend against pneumonia. The pneumococcal vaccine can help prevent other bacterial infections such as ear infections, strep throat, and meningitis, according to the Cleveland Clinic. 

11. If you were born after 1957: Measles (maybe)

“It was all quiet on the measles front until recently, because we’d previously done a great job vaccinating against it,” says Dr. Garrett-Price, referring to the record-breaking measles outbreaks. Measles was declared eliminated in the U.S. in 2000 thanks to the vaccination program, but there have been nearly 1,600 confirmed cases in the U.S. so far in 2025—the highest number in more than 30 years. 

Those born before 1957 are thought to have a natural immunity to the disease from earlier outbreaks. Others may need a booster depending on when they got their original vaccine, as the recommendations changed in 1989 from a single shot to a two-dose series. Your doctor can run an immunity test to determine your need for a measles booster shot. 

For daily wellness updates, subscribe to The Healthy by Reader’s Digest newsletter and follow The Healthy on Facebook and Instagram. Keep reading:

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