The daily business briefing: July 9, 2021

Pfizer plans to request authorization of booster shot, Wells Fargo says it's closing all personal lines of credit, and more

Several vials of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine.
(Image credit: Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images)

1. Pfizer to request approval for COVID-19 booster shot

Pfizer plans to ask federal regulators to authorize use of its COVID-19 vaccine booster within weeks, Reuters reported Thursday, citing the drugmaker's top scientist, Mikael Dolsten. Dolsten said the recent drop in Israel of the effectiveness of the company's vaccine indicated that inoculated people faced an increased risk of infection after six months. The spread of the highly infectious Delta variant also is increasing the risk of infection and moderate illness among people who have been fully vaccinated. "The Pfizer vaccine is highly active against the Delta variant," Dolsten told Reuters. But after six months, he added, antibodies wane, as expected, and infection risk rises. The Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said boosters aren't yet necessary.

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Harold Maass, The Week US

Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.