FDA advisers recommend updating COVID booster shots for fall
FDA advisers recommend updating COVID booster shots for fall
At least some U.S. adults may get updated COVID-19 shots this fall, as government advisers voted Tuesday that it's time to tweak booster doses to better match the most recent virus variants.
Advisers to the Food and Drug Administration wrestled with how to modify doses now when there's no way to know how the rapidly mutating virus will evolve by fall - especially since people who get today's recommended boosters remain strongly protected against COVID-19's worst outcomes.
Ultimately the FDA panel voted 19-2 that COVID-19 boosters should contain some version of the super-contagious omicron variant, to be ready for an anticipated fall booster campaign.
“We are going to be behind the eight-ball if we wait longer,” said one adviser, Dr. Mark Sawyer of the University of California, San Diego.
The FDA will have to decide the exact recipe, but expect a combination shot that adds protection against either omicron or some of its newer relatives to the original vaccine.
“None of us has a crystal ball” to know the next threatening variant, said FDA vaccine chief Dr. Peter Marks. But “we may at least bring the immune system closer to being able to respond to what's circulating” now rather than far older virus strains.
It's not clear who would be offered a tweaked booster - they might be urged only for older adults or those at high risk from the virus. But the FDA is expected to decide on the recipe change within days and then Pfizer and Moderna will have to seek authorization for the appropriately updated doses, time for health authorities to settle on a fall strategy.
Current COVID-19 vaccines have saved millions of lives globally. With a booster dose, those used in the U.S. retain strong protection against hospitalization and death but their ability to block infection dropped markedly when omicron appeared. And the omicron mutant that caused the winter surge has been replaced by its genetically distinct relatives. The two newest omicron cousins, called BA.4 and BA.5, together now make up half of U.S. cases, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Pfizer and Moderna already were brewing boosters that add protection to the first omicron mutant. Their combination shots, what scientists call “bivalent” vaccines, substantially boosted levels of antibodies capable of fighting that variant, more than simply giving another dose of today's vaccine.
Both companies found the tweaked shots also offered some cross-protection against those worrisome BA.4 and BA.5 mutants, too, but not nearly as much.
Many scientists favor the combination approach because it preserves the original vaccines' proven benefits, which include some cross-protection against other mutants that have cropped up during the pandemic.
The question facing FDA is the correct recipe change. Both companies said they'd have plenty of omicron-targeted combo shots by October but Moderna said switching to target omicron's newest relatives might delay its version another month.
Further complicating the decision is that only half of vaccinated Americans have received that all-important first booster. And while the CDC says protection against hospitalization has slipped some for older adults, a second booster that's recommended for people 50 and older seems to restore it. But only a quarter of those eligible for the additional booster have gotten one.
Marks said that by tweaking the shots, “we're hoping we can convince people to go get that booster to strengthen their immune response and help prevent another wave.”
The logistics will be challenging. Many Americans haven't had their first vaccinations yet, including young children who just became eligible - and it's not clear whether tweaked boosters eventually might lead to a change in the primary vaccine. But the FDA's advisers said it's important to go ahead and study updated vaccine recipes in children, too.
And one more complexity: A third company, Novavax, is awaiting FDA authorization of a more traditional kind of COVID-19 vaccine, protein-based shots. Novavax argued Tuesday that a booster of its regular vaccine promises a good immune response against the new omicron mutants without a recipe change.
Advisers to the World Health Organization recently said omicron-tweaked shots would be most beneficial as a booster only, because they should increase the breadth of people's cross-protection against multiple variants.
“We don't want the world to lose confidence in vaccines that are currently available,” said Dr. Kanta Subbarao, a virologist who chairs that WHO committee.
------
The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute's Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
Sign up to receive the most important updates in your inbox two times a week
This undated electron microscope image made available by the U.S. National Institutes of Health in February 2020 shows the Novel Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, orange, emerging from the surface of cells, green, cultured in the lab. (NIAID-RML via AP)
American actor Anne Heche will be taken of life support on Sunday, nine days after suffering severe injuries in a fiery car crash, as a compatible person was found to receive her donated organs, a spokesperson said.
FBI testing of the gun used in the fatal shooting on the movie set of 'Rust' found that the weapon handled by actor Alec Baldwin could not be fired without pulling the trigger while the gun was cocked, according to a newly released forensics report.
About 4,000 beagles are looking for homes after animal rescue organizations started removing them from a Virginia facility that bred them to be sold to laboratories for drug experiments.
Republicans stepped up calls on Sunday for the release of an FBI affidavit showing the underlying justification for its seizure of documents at former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago home.
A new study is offering a dire prediction for the U.S. state of California, where scientists say catastrophic flooding could become twice as likely in the future due to the effects of climate change.
Authorities in Norway said Sunday they have euthanized a walrus that had drawn crowds of spectators in the Oslo Fjord after concluding that it posed a risk to humans.
Pennsylvania state police say a man who was upset about an argument with his mother drove through a crowd at a fundraiser for victims of a recent deadly house fire, killing one person at the event and injuring 17 others, then returned home and beat his mother to death.
A new study suggests that Antarctica’s ice shelves may be melting faster than previously believed, which is causing sea levels to rise at a more rapid pace and accelerating the dangers of climate change.
The Senegalese Embassy in Ottawa is contradicting Quebec's rental board ruling against one of their diplomats arrested and allegedly beaten by the provincial police.
Alberta Premier Jason Kenney condemned a controversial prize-winning essay that's been criticized for being sexist and racist during his provincewide radio call-in program, but also appeared to downplay the controversy it generated.
After Indian-born British novelist Salman Rushdie was attacked during a writing conference in western New York on Friday, current and former Canadian politicians are weighing in on what such attacks mean for freedom of expression and thought.
Canadian writers, publishers and literary figures doubled down on the right to freedom of thought and expression on Saturday, one day after an attack on award-winning author Salman Rushdie that left him hospitalized and on a ventilator.
Quebec's new language law has dozens of municipalities in the province shoring up their bilingual status, with few considering giving up the right to serve their citizens in both English and French.
About 4,000 beagles are looking for homes after animal rescue organizations started removing them from a Virginia facility that bred them to be sold to laboratories for drug experiments.
Pennsylvania state police say a man who was upset about an argument with his mother drove through a crowd at a fundraiser for victims of a recent deadly house fire, killing one person at the event and injuring 17 others, then returned home and beat his mother to death.
Republicans stepped up calls on Sunday for the release of an FBI affidavit showing the underlying justification for its seizure of documents at former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago home.
On the eve of the anniversary of the Taliban takeover of Kabul, Afghanistan's former president on Sunday defended what he said was a split-second decision to flee, saying he wanted to avoid the humiliation of surrender to the insurgents.
After Indian-born British novelist Salman Rushdie was attacked during a writing conference in western New York on Friday, current and former Canadian politicians are weighing in on what such attacks mean for freedom of expression and thought.
The German government on Friday issued a statement confirming the agreement will be signed Aug. 23 in Stephenville, where a Newfoundland based company plans to build a zero-emission plant that will use wind energy to produce hydrogen for export.
Senior civil servants explored offering Indigenous-language training to federal employees and possible exemptions to those who already speak one from requiring fluency in both English and French, newly released documents show.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will accompany the chancellor of Germany, Olaf Scholz, on a brief Canadian visit later this month that will include stops in Montréal, Toronto and Stephenville in western Newfoundland, his office announced on Saturday.
Kristen Hayes lives close to the hospital in Yarmouth, N.S., but she says that twice in the past month, her son, who has a rare form of epilepsy, has been taken by ambulance to the emergency room there, only to be left waiting.
More Canadians are ending their lives with a medically-assisted death, says the third federal annual report on medical assistance in dying (MAID). Data shows that 10,064 people died in 2021 with medical aid, an increase of 32 per cent over 2020.
Last month was the Earth’s sixth-warmest July on record in 143 years, according to the U.S. federal agency that studies oceans, the atmosphere, and coastal areas.
Chinese tech giant Huawei said Friday its revenue fell in the first half of 2022 but new ventures in autos and other industries helped to offset a decline in smartphone sales under U.S. sanctions.
American actor Anne Heche will be taken of life support on Sunday, nine days after suffering severe injuries in a fiery car crash, as a compatible person was found to receive her donated organs, a spokesperson said.
FBI testing of the gun used in the fatal shooting on the movie set of 'Rust' found that the weapon handled by actor Alec Baldwin could not be fired without pulling the trigger while the gun was cocked, according to a newly released forensics report.
The Brad Pitt action film 'Bullet Train' led all movies in ticket sales for a second straight weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday, while a quiet spell in theatres and incredible staying power allowed 'Top Gun: Maverick' to rocket back into third place in its 12th week of release.
Veteran stock market investor and Indian billionaire Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, nicknamed India's own Warren Buffett, died Sunday in Mumbai city, Press Trust of India news agency reported. He was 62.
One of the best-performing sectors during the pandemic, the technology sector is now facing a challenging time as a reversal in fortunes has companies tightening their belts.
Since being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, Peter Foran takes his wife Janice for romantic rides on his wheelchair. They travel along Vancouver's bike lanes and waterfront paths, with her sitting sideways across his lap.
There was something puzzling about the young Western women staying at the youth hostels in Seoul, thought researcher Min Joo Lee. After visiting eight hostels and interviewing 123 women, mostly from North America and Europe, Lee came to the conclusion that many had been drawn to the country by what she calls "the Netflix effect."
On the surface it's a food festival, but the purpose of the inaugural B.C. Dumpling Festival is to fight racism by bridging cultures through dumplings.
Simona Halep has won the National Bank Open for a third time. The Romanian beat Brazil's Beatriz Haddad Maia 6-3, 2-6, 6-3 on Sunday in the WTA event's final.
Maja Stark of Sweden closed with a 10-under 63 on Sunday and won the ISPS Handa World Invitational for her third victory this year on the Ladies European Tour, and this one with an additional perk.
The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Office of Defects Investigation has opened a query into seat belt pretensioners on certain 2020-2022 Kia/Hyundai vehicles, saying that they may rupture or explode.
A cleaning service employee who was working at a General Motors plant in Michigan was killed Thursday during an altercation with a co-worker, authorities said.
Gasoline prices in the U.S. dipped to just under the US$4 mark for the first time in more than five months -- good news for consumers who are struggling with high prices for many other essentials.
