FDA authorizes BA.4/5-targeting COVID boosters from Moderna and Pfizer
Enlarge / An Army veteran waits the recommended 15 minutes to see if he will have any adverse reactions after receiving his second COVID-19 booster shot at Edward Hines Jr. VA Hospital on April 1, 2022, in Hines, Illinois. (credit: Getty | Scott Olson)
As expected, the Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday authorized second-generation COVID-19 boosters from Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech. The newly authorized boosters are bivalent, targeting both the original strain of SARS-CoV-2 and the BA.4/5 omicron subvariants, which share the same spike protein and are currently the dominant variants circulating.
The new Pfizer-BioNTech boosters-which the FDA calls "updated boosters"-will be available to everyone 12 and above. The updated Moderna boosters will be available to anyone 18 and up. In both cases, the boosters should be given at least two months after the last COVID-19 vaccine or booster.
The FDA's authorization comes ahead of a scheduled meeting Thursday and Friday of an advisory panel for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC panel of independent expert advisors-the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP)-will vote on whether the updated boosters should be recommended for use as early as Thursday.