A panel of advisers to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Thursday unanimously backed COVID-19 vaccine boosters for recipients of the Moderna Inc and Johnson & Johnson shots, and said Americans can choose a different shot from their original inoculation as a booster.
CDC director Rochelle Walensky signed off on the recommendations late on Thursday, aligning the agency with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's authorization U.S. FDA clears Moderna, J&J COVID-19 boosters, backs use of different vaccine for boost on Wednesday for the additional boosters and "mix-and-match" dosing.
"There are now booster recommendations for all three available COVID-19 vaccines in the United States. Eligible individuals may choose which vaccine they receive as a booster dose," the agency said in a statement.
That could pave the way for the extra shots to become available immediately afterward to millions of Americans.
Still, health officials and public health experts said the booster rollout could be confusing.
The panel struggled with trying to make the language of its recommendations as clear as possible, and also offer flexibility for patients to get a vaccine of their choice.
"A really important aspect of all of this is being clear and not dancing on the head of a pin, so that we don't further confuse the American people," said Dr. Beth Bell, a panel member and clinical professor in the department of global health at the University of Washington in Seattle.
The recommendations also open the door for recipients of the one-shot J&J vaccine to get a dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines that have been shown to afford greater protection in a variety of studies.
Although these vaccines have been highly effective in preventing serious illness and death, some government scientists have suggested that boosters are needed to keep immunity high, especially as the extremely contagious Delta variant of the virus can cause breakthrough infections among some who are fully vaccinated.
ACIP voted to recommend booster doses for everyone 18 and older who received a first dose of Johnson & Johnson's vaccine at least two months earlier.
For those who received their second dose of Moderna's vaccine at least six months earlier, ACIP recommended a third shot for those age 65 and over, as well as some individuals at risk or severe illness and those at high risk of exposure to the virus through their jobs.
Dr. Helen Talbot, an infectious disease expert at Vanderbilt University and a panel member, said she voted for the recommendation, but cautioned, "Moderna has very good vaccine efficacy. There will be some confusion with the higher versus lower dose."
Booster doses of the Moderna vaccine will be 50 micrograms, half the strength of the original shots.
"Those not at high risk should be really thoughtful about getting the higher dose. I do think we need to be very aware of potential complications."
Experts said communicating those risks could be an issue, especially given the flexibility of allowing people to choose a different vaccine from their original series.
"At the end of the day, even that phrase 'mix and match' pretty much gives people the latitude to ... do pretty much anything," Glen Nowak, a risk communication professor at the University of Georgia and former communications director for CDC’s National Immunization Program said after the meeting. "I think that's going to be an issue."
The FDA and CDC previously signed off on booster shots of the COVID-19 vaccine from Pfizer Inc and partner BioNTech SE for the same groups included in the Moderna recommendations.
Pfizer released data on Thursday suggesting that a booster dose was highly protective for those age 16 and older compared with protection nearly a year after receiving the two-dose regimen due to waning efficacy over time.
About 11.6 million people have so far received a booster dose, according to data from the CDC https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#vaccinations_vacc-total-admin-rate-total.
The FDA and CDC have been under pressure to authorize the additional shots after the White House announced plans in August for a widespread booster campaign.
Other countries such as Israel have begun offering boosters to a broad population, but it is not yet known whether the United States will follow suit.
Reuters
Fri Oct 22 2021
CDC unanimously backed COVID-19 vaccine boosters for recipients of the Moderna Inc and Johnson & Johnson shots, and said Americans can choose a different shot from their original inoculation as a booster. - REUTERS
Bekas gabenor New York, anak tiri diserang empat individu
Kedua-dua mangsa mengalami kecederaan di bahagian muka serta badan dan dikejarkan ke hospital untuk menerima rawatan.
Tentera AS lancar serangan di bandar Yaman
AS menyerang 15 sasaran Houthi di kawasan yang dikawal oleh kumpulan yang disokong Iran itu.
Korea Selatan pindahkan 97 rakyatnya dari Lubnan
Kementerian Luar Korea Selatan maklumkan, kesemua mereka tiba di Korea Selatan pada petang Sabtu.
Pelarian tiba di Syria selepas serangan Israel ke atas Lubnan - UNHCR
Lebih 200,000 warga Syria dan Lubnan telah tiba di Syria dari Lubnan sejak serangan Israel bermula 23 September lalu.
[LAPOR LANGSUNG] Lebih 2,000 terkorban di Lubnan akibat serangan Israel
Jumlah mangsa yang maut itu termasuk 261 wanita dan 127 kanak-kanak.
Lebih 2,000 terkorban di Lubnan akibat serangan Israel
Laporan Al Jazeera menyebut, jumlah mangsa yang maut itu termasuk 261 wanita dan 127 kanak-kanak.
AWANI Pagi: Pendayaupayaan Pembangunan Sosio Ekonomi Bagi Memacu Wilayah Persekutuan
Ikuti temu bual bersama Menteri di Jabatan Perdana Menteri (Wilayah Persekutuan), Dr Zaliha Mustafa di #AWANIPagi jam 7.30 pagi di saluran 501 Astro AWANI.
Pentagon, Jabatan Negara AS beri amaran jenayah perang Israel
Pegawai-pegawai tersebut telah memberi amaran peningkatan jumlah kematian di Gaza mungkin melanggar undang-undang antarabangsa.
200,000 pelarian tiba di Syria selepas serangan Israel ke atas Lubnan - UNHCR
Lebih 200,000 warga Syria dan Lubnan telah tiba di Syria dari Lubnan sejak serangan Israel bermula pada 23 Sept.
Belanjawan 2025: Kesalinghubungan internet di sekolah, kampus jadi keutamaan - Fahmi
Kementerian Komunikasi akan memberikan keutamaan dengan meneruskan usaha untuk meningkatkan dan memantapkan lagi prasarana kesalinghubungan melibatkan isu Internet, dalam Belanjawan 2025 yang akan dibentangkan pada 18 Okt ini.
Ekspedisi Kilimanjaro CDC cerminkan semangat kemerdekaan dan perpaduan
Dipimpin oleh Ketua Pegawai Eksekutif, Datuk Muzafar Kamal Shahaluddin, 17 kakitangan CDC akan mendaki Gunung Kilimanjaro dalam ekspedisi yang bermula pada 29 Ogos hingga 10 September.
Kempen 'Roots for the Future' capai agenda penghijauan, tanam 100 juta pokok menjelang 2025
Dalam usaha menangani cabaran global perubahan iklim, CDC ambil langkah majukan ekosistem mampan, sempena Hari Alam Sekitar Sedunia 2024.
Flu, jangkitan COVID-19 semakin meningkat di AS
Ketibaan pesakit yang didiagnosis sebagai COVID-19 ke jabatan kecemasan meningkat lebih daripada 10 peratus dalam minggu terkini berbanding minggu sebelumnya.
3 maut dalam pertempuran menjelang pilihan raya Liberia
"Mereka merosakkan harta benda, merompak gerai di pasar, membunuh tiga penduduk yang tidak bersalah."
100,000 maut di AS akibat ambil dos dadah berlebihan pada 2022
Tahun 2022 merekodkan kira-kira 109,680 orang maut akibat mengambil dos dadah yang berlebihan, menurut CDC pada Rabu.
CDC AS beri amaran jangkitan kulat Candida auris
Candida auris tahan terhadap pelbagai ubat, mudah merebak di kemudahan penjagaan kesihatan dan boleh menyebabkan jangkitan teruk.
Agensi kesihatan AS akui kesilapan dalam tindak balas terhadap pandemik COVID-19
Agensi kesihatan terkemuka Amerika pada Rabu mengumumkan ia merancang untuk membaik pulih sepenuhnya struktur dan operasinya berikutan kesilapan besar dalam mengendalikan respons pandemik COVID-19.
Cacar monyet: Texas umum kes pertama libatkan kanak-kanak
Daerah itu masih menunggu pengesahan akhir daripada Pusat Kawalan dan Pencegahan Penyakit (CDC).
Wabak cacar monyet di AS cecah 10,000 kes
Laporan CDC menunjukkan bahawa 1,391 kes cacar monyet yang disahkan dikesan pada Rabu.
Kes cacar monyet meningkat di New York
Sebanyak 336 kes jangkitan penyakit itu direkodkan tetapi ia mungkin tidak mencerminkan jumlah yang sebenar, menurut Jabatan Kesihatan New York.