The U.S. will reportedly approve booster shots for all 3 COVID-19 vaccines at 6 months, not 8
U.S. officials said last week that adults vaccinated with the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines should start getting booster shots eight months after their second dose was administered, starting in mid-September. Now, a person familiar with the plans tells The Wall Street Journal, federal regulators will likely approve boosters for all three approved vaccines — Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson — starting six months after inoculation.
Data the Food and Drug Administration is reviewing from vaccine makers and other countries is based on boosters given at six months, the Journal reports. "The Biden administration and companies have said that there should be enough supply for boosters that they plan to begin distributing more widely on Sept. 20. The U.S. has purchased a combined 1 billion doses from Pfizer and Moderna."
The booster rollout for adults who aren't immunocompromised hinges on FDA approval and a recommendation from a key Centers for Disease Control and Prevention outside vaccine advisory committee. Preliminary studies show significant boosts to immune protections, but "that doesn't mean every patient needs to get a booster at six months," says Leana Wen, health policy professor at George Washington University.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
There is some evidence that the vaccines lose some potency after several months and the Delta variant of the coronavirus has infected more vaccinated people than previous strains, although most breakthrough infections are mild.
The discussions about booster shots comes as the U.S. has more than 100,000 COVID-19 patients hospitalized, a level last seen on Jan. 30, before the vaccines were widely available, The Washington Post reports. Nearly a third of those hospitalizations are in Florida (17,000) and Texas (14,000), states with lower-than-average vaccination rates, large populations, and governors opposed to vaccine and mask requirements. The number of new daily cases is also almost back up to January levels — an average of 148,000 cases on Wednesday versus 151,000 on Jan. 30 — but COVID-19 deaths, 1,1000 a day, are much lower than the daily average of 3,100 recorded at the January peak.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
How social media is limiting political content
The Explainer Critics say Meta's 'extraordinary move' to have less politics in users' feeds could be 'actively muzzling civic action'
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
'Unthinkable tragedy'
Today's Newspapers A roundup of the headlines from the US front pages
By The Week Staff Published
-
Passenger: 'pleasingly off-kilter' ITV crime drama
The Week Recommends There's 'plenty to be feared' in this British murder mystery set in a quiet northern town
By Adrienne Wyper, The Week UK Published
-
US bans final type of asbestos
Speed Read Exposure to asbestos causes about 40,000 deaths in the U.S. each year
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Seattle Children's Hospital sues Texas over 'sham' demand for transgender medical records
Speed Read Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton subpoenaed records of any Texan who received gender-affirming care at the Washington hospital
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Afghanistan has a growing female suicide problem
Speed Read The Taliban has steadily whittled away women's and girls' rights in Afghanistan over the past 2 years, prompting a surge in depression and suicide
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
US life expectancy rose in 2022 but not to pre-pandemic levels
Speed Read Life expectancy is slowly crawling back up
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
Vallance diaries: Boris Johnson 'bamboozled' by Covid science
Speed Read Then PM struggled to get his head around key terms and stats, chief scientific advisor claims
By The Week UK Published
-
An increasing number of dog owners are 'vaccine hesitant' about rabies
Speed Read A new survey points to canine vaccine hesitancy
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
Anger may be a powerful motivator for tough goals, new study suggests
Speed Read Keeping your cool might actually be less efficient than letting your anger drive you
By Theara Coleman, The Week US Published
-
Malaria is spreading, but we can stop it
The Explainer Climate change is hastening the disease but medicine is catching up
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published