Agreeing With FDA, CDC Says Yes To Boosters — Which May Come Soon
Dr. Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health, said Sunday the U.S. could decide in the next couple weeks whether to offer covid booster shots to Americans this fall, AP reported. Health care workers and the elderly would likely be the first to receive them.
NPR:
CDC Recommends 3rd Vaccine Dose For Immunocompromised People
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is officially recommending that people with weakened immune systems get a third shot of either the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccine. It comes hours after a unanimous vote by a panel of advisers Friday to recommend the guidance and less than 24 hours after the Food and Drug Administration authorized such use. Providers generally wait for a CDC recommendation on vaccine use, even if the FDA has approved or authorized a vaccine. (Neel, 8/13)
AP:
US Mulls COVID Vaccine Boosters For Elderly As Early As Fall
Warning of tough days ahead with surging COVID-19 infections, the director of the National Institutes of Health said Sunday the U.S. could decide in the next couple weeks whether to offer coronavirus booster shots to Americans this fall. Among the first to receive them could be health care workers, nursing home residents and other older Americans. Dr. Francis Collins also pleaded anew for unvaccinated people to get their shots, calling them “sitting ducks” for a delta variant that is ravaging the country and showing little sign of letting up. “This is going very steeply upward with no signs of having peaked out,” he said. (Yen, 8/15)
Bloomberg:
Fauci Says U.S. Can Move Quickly To Offer Third Vaccine Shots
Anthony Fauci, President Joe Biden’s chief medical adviser, said the U.S. will be “absolutely prepared” to distribute a third shot of the coronavirus vaccine quickly to a wider population if needed. He gave no timeline but said health officials are evaluating various groups “on a daily and weekly basis.” “So if it turns out, as the data come in, we see we do need to give an additional dose to people in nursing homes, actually, or people who are elderly we will be absolutely prepared to do that very quickly,” he said on CBS’s “Face the Nation.” (Fisher, 8/15)
Some regions are already offering a third dose —
AP:
Louisiana Providing 3rd Pfizer, Moderna Vaccine For Some
The Louisiana Department of Health is making COVID-19 vaccine booster shots available for some people with weak immune systems that put them at high risk for COVID-19.The department said in a news release Friday that it’s following guidelines released late Thursday by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC endorsed a third dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine for people whose immune systems have been weakened by cancer treatment, organ transplants or other conditions. (8/15)
Bay Area News Group:
Santa Clara County Offers Third Vaccine Dose To Immunocompromised People
Santa Clara County is now offering a third dose of coronavirus vaccines to people who are immunocompromised following approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, officials said Saturday. Eligible people — a tailored list including transplant recipients, cancer patients and select other conditions — may schedule third-dose appointments through the county’s COVID-19 vaccination website or contact their health care provider. (Kelliher, 8/14)
Also —
Fox News:
Fauci Dismisses Study On Delta Efficacy Between Moderna, Pfizer As Guide For Booster Shots
Dr. Anthony Fauci has dismissed a study that deemed the Moderna vaccine as more effective than the Pfizer one against the COVID-19 delta variant. The Mayo Clinic and Cambridge-based biotech company nfrence conducted the study, posted in medrvix last week, by analyzing samples of delta variant prevalence in Minnesota from January to July. When asked if this indicated that individuals should seek a Moderna dose for the booster shot, Fauci disagreed. (Aitken, 8/15)
