US officials call for more data on vaccine boosters as Pfizer pushes for third shot

Pharma company presses case with senior health officials

WHO urges priority for nations with low Covid vaccination rates

Pfizer, the pharmaceutical company that created one of the first Covid-19 vaccines to be approved, has been making a hard sell for emergency approval of boosters - additional doses given to those already vaccinated, especially immunocompromised adults.

But in private meetings with Pfizer on Monday, senior US officials said they needed more data - prompting the latest debate over how to curb a pandemic which has claimed more than 620,000 lives in the country. Last week, the US health department also rebuked Pfizer for pressing for a booster shot, and Anthony Fauci, Joe Biden's chief medical adviser, has said there isn't enough evidence to support needing a third shot.