FDA Could OK Fall COVID Shots as Early as This Week

August 20, 2024
Ernie Mundell HealthDay Reporter

Updated shots you could use this fall to shield against COVID-19 infection may receive approval this week.

Two sources familiar with the issue told CNN that updated mRNA vaccines from Moderna and Pfizer that target a variant of the virus called KP.2 could be greenlit as early as this week. The news agency said the sources declined to be named because information around the timing of approval hasn't yet been made public.

It's not clear whether approval for Novavax' non-mRNA shot, targeted to the JN.1 strain, would be approved simultaneously.

If approval does come this week, that would be a few weeks ahead of the timing for last fall's shots, which were approved on Sept. 11.

The news comes as Americans are suffering through a summer surge of COVID cases -- the highest seen since the summer of 2022, based on wastewater levels of virus tracked by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

According to CDC data, the prevalent COVID variant is now KP.3.1.1, thought to make up 37% of cases over the past two weeks.

Still, experts note that although levels of severe disease have been rising, they remain much lower than those seen during the early years of the pandemic.

KP.3.1.1 and KP.2, which are both covered in the updated shots, are offshoots of JN.1. All are members of the Omicron family.

Both Moderna and Pfizer have said they have ample supplies of their updated COVID vaccines on hand, ready for shipment to stores soon after FDA approval. Novavax' vaccine may take a bit longer to reach consumers, because its protein-based shot takes longer to manufacture than mRNA vaccines do.

In June, the CDC recommended that every American over the age of 6 months receive an updated COVID-19 shot along with the flu shot this year.

Should you get a dose of the current COVID vaccine, or wait for the updated shots?

Speaking with CNN, Dr. Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, said he's getting both.

“Now is the time to get a dose with this surge,” he reasoned.

Osterholm recommends boosting your immunity now with the current vaccine during the summer's uptick in cases, and getting the updated shot in about four months -- the interval recommended by health officials.

More information

Find out more about the COVID vaccine at the Mayo Clinic.

SOURCE: CNN

Vaccines