The FDA is poised to authorize a second coronavirus vaccine booster for anyone 50 and older. It would provide an extra layer of protection amid concerns Europe’s rise in infections from an omicron subvariant could hit the United States.
Health officials also considered greenlighting boosters for people 60 and older to coincide with the data from Israel, which recently made fourth shots available for that age group, and has supplied a good deal of the available data on second boosters.Some officials at the CDC and elsewhere in the administration expressed concern that setting the bar at 60 or 65 would prevent access to second boosters by younger members of medically underserved groups, including Latinos and Blacks.
An Israeli study, not yet peer-reviewed, in more than half a million adults 60 to 100 years old found that a second booster provided significant protection against death from covid-19. Of 328,597 people who received a second booster during a 40-day study period early this year, 92 recipients died; among the 234,868 who had only one booster, 232 people died.
Unlike with some past vaccine decisions, the CDC will not directly recommend the second booster in part because the data is not robust, especially in the younger-than-60 group. The agency wants to give permission for a second booster to people who desire that. If officials conclude later that an annual coronavirus booster will be needed in the fall for the broader population, the agency could issue a recommendation.
Peter Hotez, a professor of pediatrics and molecular virology at Baylor College of Medicine and co-director of the Texas Children’s Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, said he strongly supports a second booster for people 60 and older, based on the Israeli data.“The Israeli data is not perfect, but that is all we have,” Hotez said.
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