Vaccines are safe, effective and should be provided to people with chronic liver disease (CLD), independent of the cause and the severity of the liver disease. This includes people with cirrhosis or liver decompensation, hepatobiliary cancer, and liver transplant recipients.

People with CLD have a greater risk of being hospitalized, requiring intensive care, intubation and/or ventilation and of dying from COVID-19. Because of this increased morbidity and mortality, it is important that these individuals, their household contacts and healthcare providers receive COVID-19 vaccination. There is no evidence to suggest that COVID-19 vaccines have any negative impact on a person who has CLD.

Current COVID-19 vaccines continue to exhibit strong protection against severe disease and death across all virus variants seen to date. Therefore, reaching high coverage with the primary vaccination series and additional doses among all eligible people, especially the most vulnerable, remains a priority.

Medically stable patients with CLD who are receiving antiviral therapy for hepatitis B or hepatitis C or other medical therapy should be considered for COVID-19 vaccination without interruption of their treatment.

Patients with CLD will benefit from extended protection against both COVID-19 and influenza disease by co-administration of COVID-19 vaccines and seasonal influenza vaccines, whenever feasible.

Individuals who have had COVID-19 still benefit from vaccination against the disease because a combination of naturally acquired and vaccine-induced immunity is likely to offer greater protection against re-infection.