Coronavirus: US FDA approves updated Covid-19 vaccines to increase protection this autumn
The US approved updated Covid-19 vaccines on Monday, hoping to rev up protection against the latest coronavirus strains and halt any surge this autumn and winter.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) decision opens the newest vaccines from Moderna and Pfizer and its partner BioNTech to most Americans even if they have never had a coronavirus vaccination. It is part of a shift to treat autumn updates of the Covid-19 vaccine much like getting a yearly flu vaccination.
There is still another step: the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) must sign off. A CDC advisory panel is set to issue recommendations on Tuesday on who most needs the updated shots. Vaccinations could begin later this week, and both the Covid-19 and flu vaccine can be given at the same visit.
Covid-19 hospitalisations have been rising since late summer although – thanks to some lasting immunity from prior vaccinations and infections – not nearly as much as this time last year.
New bivalent Covid-19 vaccine to be available in Hong Kong after mid-September
New bivalent Covid-19 vaccine to be available in Hong Kong after mid-September
But protection wanes over time and the coronavirus continually churns out new variants that can dodge prior immunity. It has been a year since the last time the vaccines were tweaked.
Just like earlier vaccinations, the autumn round is cleared for adults and children as young as six months. The FDA said starting at age five, most people can get a single dose even if they have never had a prior Covid-19 vaccination. Younger children might need additional doses depending on their history of Covid-19 infections and vaccinations.
The newest vaccinations target an Omicron variant named XBB. 1.5. That specific strain is no longer dominant but it is close enough to coronavirus strains causing most Covid-19 illnesses today that the FDA determined it would offer good cross-protection.
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These newest vaccines replace combination vaccines that mixed protection against the original coronavirus strain and even older Omicron variants. Like earlier versions, they are expected to be most protective against severe illness, hospitalisation and death, rather than mild infection.
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