Pregnancy: While pregnant individuals may be eligible to get the vaccine it’s strongly recommended that you consult your doctor beforehand. At this time, there is limited data about the safety of COVID-19 vaccines for people who are pregnant. Based on how mRNA vaccines work (like Moderna & Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines), experts believe they are unlikely to pose a specific risk for people who are pregnant. However, the actual risks of mRNA vaccines to the pregnant person and her fetus are unknown because these vaccines have not been studied in pregnant women. Viral vector vaccines (like Johnson & Johnson/Janssen COVID-19 vaccine) use a modified version of a different virus. Different vaccines that use the same viral vector have been given to pregnant people in all trimesters of pregnancy, including in a large-scale Ebola vaccination trial. No adverse pregnancy-related outcomes, including adverse outcomes that affected the infant, were associated with vaccination in these trials.

Breastfeeding: Yes, but you may want to consult your doctor. The COVID-19 vaccines authorized now are non-replicating vaccines, meaning they are able to create an immune response but do not reproduce inside host cells. Because non-replicating vaccines pose no risk for lactating people or their infants, COVID-19 vaccines are also thought to not be a risk to the breastfeeding infant. Therefore, lactating people may choose to be vaccinated. However, there is no data on the safety of COVID-19 vaccines in lactating women or on the effects of these vaccines on the breastfed infant or on milk production/excretion at this time.