New Yorkers can walk into participating pharmacies and receive the 2025-26 COVID-19 vaccination without a prescription.
Since March 2020, the COVID pandemic has resulted in the deaths of over 1.2 million Americans, according to the CDC. A December 2022 Commonwealth Fund study found that at least 3 million additional deaths were prevented because 80% of the population was vaccinated. The CDC estimates that since last October there have been up to 61,000 fatalities from the virus — more than twice the number that have died from flu — and 530,000 hospitalizations. According to the May 2025 New England Journal of Medicine, only 25% of all Americans get an annual COVID shot, partly due to mistrust in the efficacy of the vaccine and the fear of side effects.
Routine access to the immunization had been in peril due to debate within the CDC over concerns about potential risks like heart inflammation (myocarditis) — despite research to the contrary. The CDC also considered requiring a doctor’s prescription for the vaccination. In May, Human Health and Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced that the CDC would no longer recommend the COVID vaccine for healthy children and pregnant women, citing lack of clinical data supporting the immunization. (National Institute of Health studies document that vaccinating these groups significantly minimized disease severity and spread.)
With COVID-19 cases on the rise in New York state, Gov. Kathy Hochul issued an executive order on Sept. 5 allowing pharmacists to vaccinate individuals 3 years and older without a prescription; similar access to the vaccination is available in 22 other states. The shot is covered by health insurance, Medicare Part B, and Medicaid; those without coverage should contact Dutchess County Community Action Partnership or Columbia County Community Health Consortium.
New York has now joined the Northeast Public Health Collaborative — a group of seven states, including Connecticut, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania — with the goal of strengthening community confidence in vaccines and science-based medicine. The collaborative’s guidelines for the 2025-26 COVID vaccination are consistent with those of the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Academy of Family Physicians, and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
The CDC amended its recommendations on Sept. 19 to include COVID vaccinations for everyone over the age of 6 months — with no prescription. But in a departure from most routine vaccines, like a tetanus or flu shot, pharmacists must first counsel eligible patients about the COVID vaccine’s risks and benefits. The CDC calls this “shared clinical decision making.” Babies ages 6 to 23 months must be vaccinated by their health care provider.
Nasir Mahmood, pharmacist and owner of Pine Plains Pharmacy, was adamant about the importance of getting vaccinated against COVID-19. “People making the decisions are not thinking of the welfare of the population,” he said. “All vaccines are proven to be the best safeguard for the health of the community. There is nothing out of the ordinary with the COVID vaccine versus any other. I personally take the vaccine, and I advocate everyone take it.”
Pine Plains Pharmacy accepts walk-ins for the COVID shot (and other immunizations, such as flu and tetanus) from 1 to 5 p..m. Monday through Friday, and from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday.
McCarthy’s Pharmacy in Stanfordville offers vaccinations, including COVID, from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, and from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday.
Other pharmacies in the area providing the immunization include Hannaford and CVS Pharmacies.
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