Fully Vaccinated Americans may Need More COVID Shots this Fall, Experts Say
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- Fully vaccinated Americans may require an extra COVID-19 shot this fall as experts say immunity from the vaccines are expected to wane and transmissiblity of the strains to climb in the colder months
- Dr. Peter Marks, the head of the U.S. Foods and Drugs Administration's office in charge of vaccine safety made the comments on a conference call Tuesday, suggesting that people who are currently eligible for their fourth shots may need to get a fifth dose
- Marks also noted that to boost its fight against the pandemic, the U.S. could switch to a vaccine that targets the newer strains of the virus as against available shots that target the original virus that emerged in Wuhan, China two years ago
- This comes as the FDA authorized a fourth dose of Pfizer and Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine for people ages 50 and older and a second booster for younger people with compromised immune systems
- The FDA says it will hold an advisory committee meeting next week to discuss further recommendations on additional doses in the U.S. and whether available vaccines need to be modified to offer better protection against variants
