On Wednesday, the Biden administration announced that a booster dose of COVID-19 vaccines would likely start in September.
People who received the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines would be eligible to get a third shot 8 months after they received their second dose of the vaccines, the administration officials said.
U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy said, “We anticipate a booster will [also] likely be needed.”
The Johnson & Johnson (J&J) vaccine was not available in the U.S. until March, and “we expect more data on J&J in the coming weeks, so that plan is coming,” he added.
The plan to approve booster shots of the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines for the general pollution is currently in progress.
Dr. Murthy said, “We know that even highly effective vaccines become less effective over time. Having reviewed the most current data, it is now our clinical judgment that the time to lay out a plan for the COVID-19 boosters is now.”
New research published Wednesday has shown that the efficacy of both the mRNA0based vaccines wane over time.
However, Dr. Murthy and others have assured that although efficacy declines, the vaccines continue to protect people against severe infections, hospitalizations, and even death.
He said, “If you are fully vaccinated, you still have a high degree of protection against the worst outcomes.”
CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky referred to the findings of three studies, published in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, which prompted the decision to recommend booster doses.
Even Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, said immunologic information suggests the need for a booster shot.
“Antibody levels decline over time and higher antibody levels are associated with higher efficacy of the vaccine,” explained Dr. Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. “Higher levels of antibody may be needed to protect against Delta.”
He went on to say that a booster dose increased antibody levels by “at least tenfold and possibly more.” And higher antibody levels may be required to protect against the highly contagious Delta variant.
Jeff Zients, the White House COVID-19 response coordinator, said, “We will make sure it is convenient and easy to get the booster shot,” adding that the booster will be free and no one will be asked about immigration status.
The officials said the move to promote booster shots is an attempt to stay ahead of the deadly virus.
However, not everyone agreed with the idea of promoting a booster dose. On Wednesday, WHO Chief Scientist Dr. Soumya Swaminathan said that the right thing to do right now “is to wait for the science to tell us when boosters, which groups of people, and which vaccines need boosters.”
She also presented the “moral and ethical argument of giving people third doses, when they’re already well protected and while the rest of the world is waiting for their primary immunization.”
Dr. Swaminathan said there is some role for boosters in immunocompromised people but noted, “that’s a small number of people.” Widespread boosters “will only lead to more variants, to more escape variants, and perhaps we’re heading into more dire situations,” she added.
