Germany has significantly revised its COVID-19 vaccination policy, ending routine recommendations for healthy adults under the age of 75, including healthy pregnant women, in a move that reflects the country’s assessment of changing pandemic conditions and widespread population immunity.
The updated guidance, issued by Germany’s Standing Committee on Vaccination (STIKO), replaces previous recommendations that advised annual COVID-19 booster vaccinations for adults aged 60 and above. Under the new policy, routine vaccination is now limited primarily to people aged 75 years and older and other groups considered to be at higher risk of severe illness.
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According to STIKO, the decision was based on evidence that the vast majority of Germany’s adult population has developed what it described as “hybrid immunity” through previous COVID-19 vaccination, natural infection, or a combination of both. The committee also noted that severe COVID-19 cases have become increasingly uncommon among healthy individuals and that SARS-CoV-2 now behaves more like a seasonal respiratory virus.
The revised recommendations continue to advise COVID-19 vaccination for adults aged 75 and above, residents of long-term care facilities, people with weakened immune systems or significant underlying medical conditions, certain healthcare workers, caregivers of vulnerable individuals, and pregnant women with serious medical risk factors or pregnancy-related complications.
STIKO cited data indicating that more than 95 percent of Germany’s adult population has broad immunity against COVID-19. It also pointed to a marked decline in severe disease outcomes, reporting that hospital admissions fell from about 135,000 during the 2023–24 respiratory virus season to approximately 50,000 in the 2025–26 season. Deaths also declined from roughly 4,300 to fewer than 900 over the same period.
The committee noted that older adults continue to account for the overwhelming majority of severe COVID-19 outcomes, with around 80 percent of hospitalizations and 97 percent of deaths occurring among people aged 60 years and older. The highest disease burden remains among those aged 80 and above.
The policy change has generated mixed reactions among health experts.
Harald Walach, founder of the Change Health Science Institute in Germany and a research fellow at Kazimieras Simonavicius University in Lithuania, described the revised guidance as an indirect acknowledgment that repeated COVID-19 vaccinations are no longer considered necessary for most healthy adults because naturally acquired immunity and previous vaccinations now provide substantial protection.
German toxicologist Helmut Sterz also welcomed the revised recommendations but criticized German health authorities, arguing that the change came later than it should have. He further questioned the long-term effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccination and advocated greater reliance on naturally acquired immunity.
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Similarly, internal medicine physician Dr. Clayton J. Baker described the updated policy as “a step in the right direction” but argued that annual COVID-19 booster doses may not be necessary even for many older adults, although this view differs from current public health recommendations.
The revised guidance comes amid declining COVID-19 vaccine uptake across several European countries. Official data from Germany’s Robert Koch Institute (RKI) showed that only 20.9 percent of adults aged 60 years and older received a COVID-19 vaccine during the 2024–25 respiratory virus season, compared with substantially higher uptake during earlier booster campaigns.
STIKO’s report focuses primarily on the evolving epidemiological situation and does not extensively address concerns raised by some researchers regarding adverse events associated with COVID-19 vaccines.
While some scientists have continued to question the long-term safety of mRNA vaccines and have called for further investigation, major international public health agencies, including the World Health Organization and the European Medicines Agency, continue to maintain that the benefits of COVID-19 vaccination outweigh the known risks for recommended population groups.
Germany’s updated vaccination policy follows similar changes adopted by several other countries. The United Kingdom previously narrowed its COVID-19 vaccination programme to older adults, care home residents and immunocompromised individuals, while U.S. health authorities have also shifted toward a more risk-based approach for many age groups.
The latest recommendations reflect an international trend toward targeting COVID-19 vaccination efforts at those most vulnerable to severe disease rather than maintaining broad annual vaccination programmes for the general healthy population.