U.S. Department of Health & Human Services

11/23/2021 | Press release | Archived content

COVID-19 Vaccines for People Who Would Like to Have a Baby

CDC and Medical Professionals Recommend COVID-19 Vaccination for People Who Want to Have Children

COVID-19 vaccination is recommended for people who are trying to get pregnant now or might become pregnant in the future, as well as their partners.

Professional medical organizations serving people of reproductive age, including adolescents, emphasize that there is no evidence that COVID-19 vaccination causes a loss of fertility.1-4 These organizations also recommend COVID-19 vaccination for people who may consider getting pregnant in the future.

Professional societies for male reproductionexternal icon recommend that men who want to have babies in the future be offered COVID-19 vaccination. There is no evidence that vaccines, including COVID-19 vaccines, cause male fertility problems.

Pregnancy After Vaccination

Many people have become pregnant after receiving a COVID-19 vaccine, including some who got vaccinated during COVID-19 vaccine clinical trials.5-7 In addition, a recent reportexternal icon using the v-safe safety monitoring system data showed that 4,800 people had a positive pregnancy test after receiving a first dose of an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine (i.e., Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna). Another reportexternal icon using data from 8 U.S. healthcare systems documented more than 1,000 people who completed COVID-19 vaccination (with any COVID-19 vaccine) before becoming pregnant.

Research Studies in People Trying to Become Pregnant

  • There is currently no evidence that vaccine ingredients or antibodies made following COVID-19 vaccination would cause any problems with becoming pregnant now or in the future.
  • A recent studyexternal icon found no differences in pregnancy success rates among women who had antibodies from COVID-19 vaccines or from a recent COVID-19 infection, and women who had no antibodies.
  • Like with all vaccines, scientists are studying COVID-19 vaccines carefully for side effects and will report findings as they become available.

Research Studies of Fertility in Healthy Males

Safety Monitoring

Findings from U.S. vaccine safety monitoring systems are preliminary but reassuring. These dataexternal icon , which included people who received mRNA vaccines (i.e., Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna), did not identify any safety concerns for pregnant people who were vaccinated or for their babies. People who were pregnant reported similar types and frequencies of side effects as people who were not pregnant, including serious side effects. Serious nausea and vomiting were slightly more common among people who were pregnant. Pregnancy outcomes in vaccinated people were similar to those in studies of pregnant people conducted before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Additional reports looked at pregnant people who were vaccinated before 20 weeks of pregnancy. Scientists did not find an increased risk for miscarriage among people who received an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine during pregnancy.8,9

Additional data are being gathered on pregnancy outcomes in people who received a COVID-19 vaccine early during pregnancy and the health of their babies. CDC will report findings as they become available.

Managing Side Effects

If you have side effects after vaccination, talk to your doctor about taking over-the-counter medicine, such as ibuprofen, acetaminophen, or antihistamines, for any pain and discomfort you may experience after getting vaccinated, including fever. You can take these medications to relieve short-term side effects after getting vaccinated if you have no medical reasons that prevent you from taking these medications.

If you are pregnant (or may become pregnant) and have a fever following vaccination, you should take acetaminophen (Tylenol®) because fever-for any reason-has been associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes. It is not recommended you take these medicines before vaccination for the purpose of trying to prevent side effects. Learn about other ways to relieve side effects.

Recommendations

COVID-19 vaccination is recommended for people who are trying to get pregnant now or might become pregnant in the future, as well as their partners.

There is no recommendation for routine pregnancy testing before receiving a COVID-19 vaccine. If you are trying to become pregnant or may want to become pregnant, you do not need to avoid receiving a COVID-19 vaccine. Those who are trying to become pregnant do not need to avoid pregnancy after COVID-19 vaccination. If you get pregnant after receiving your first shot of a COVID-19 vaccine that requires two doses (i.e., Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine), you should get your second shot to get as much protection as possible.