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Pfizer officials have shared emerging data that suggests its vaccine is less effective at preventing mild symptoms of contagious COVID-19 variants over time, with increasing ineffectiveness after 6 months.
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While company officials are now seeking emergency approval of a third booster dose to prolong immunity, federal health agency officials say a third injection is unnecessary at this time.
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“Americans who have been fully immunized do not need a booster at this time,” CDC and FDA officials say in a new joint statement.
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Pfizer has publicly announced that it expects to receive approval for its third recall in August.
If you’ve been vaccinated against COVID-19, there’s a good chance you received a vaccine developed by the teams at Pfizer or Moderna – a two-round mRNA vaccine that required you to sit down for another dose. ” reminder ”within a few weeks of your first shot. While health experts were unsure whether Americans would need additional vaccines to stay safe during the pandemic, new evidence amid an increase in COVID-19 cases linked to what the World Organization health calls the “Delta” variant suggest that you might need an additional vaccine sooner than you might have guessed.
Company officials at Pfizer are touting new data that suggests the risk of infection after six months is bigger when it comes to the highly infectious Delta variant; figures published by the the Wall Street newspaper suggests that Pfizer’s vaccine protected more than 65% of those vaccinated in a subset of Israeli data collected in June and early July. That percentage is down a bit from earlier data points, which bring total protection closer to 95%, according to Israel’s health ministry.
Pfizer officials reportedly asked Food and Drug Administration officials for an emergency green light for a third booster dose earlier this week, CNBC reports. Interestingly, FDA health officials as well as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released a statement to the public even before they received a formal request for another dose of Pfizer vaccine.
“Americans who have been fully immunized do not need a booster at this time“, we read in the joint press release.”Fully vaccinated people are protected against serious illness and death, including against variants currently circulating in the country such as Delta… Unvaccinated people remain at risk. “
The joint statement also adds that an overwhelming majority of new COVID-19 cases and deaths are attributed to those who have not sought a vaccine.
This is in line with what Dr Anthony Fauci, longtime federal adviser on COVID-19 as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, recently shared with the public. “Right now, given the data and information we have, we don’t need to give people a third chance,” Dr Fauci told CNN over the weekend. “That doesn’t mean we stop there, however… studies are being done, underway as we speak, on the feasibility of whether and when we should stimulate people.”
Do I need a third Pfizer shot?
Representatives from Pfizer and BioNTech (its development partner) have released statements and data suggesting that the immunity of people vaccinated against COVID-19 may start to wane after 6 months, especially against new variants of the disease. But FDA and CDC officials argue more evidence is needed before an agency recommends a third dose for the more than 79 million Americans who have received a Pfizer vaccine this year.
Health officials argue that it is not clear whether a booster will be needed to continue to provide comprehensive protection against mild symptoms of COVID-19. But the rise of disease strains like the highly contagious Delta variant – which became America’s most virulent and dominant COVID-19 strain after being first recorded in late March, according to Yale Medicine – indicates that all Manufacturers might have to create a dose booster of their vaccines to ensure immunity during the winter season.
“While protection against serious illness has remained high for the full six months, a decline in efficacy against symptomatic illness over time and the continued emergence of variants are expected,” Pfizer officials said in a follow-up release. “Based on all of the data available to date, Pfizer and BioNTech believe that a third dose may be beneficial within 6 to 12 months of the second dose to maintain [the] the highest levels of protection. “
Currently, FDA officials will need to grant what is called an “emergency use authorization” to Pfizer before they can begin releasing another dose to the American public. When it is time for another dose of Pfizer vaccine, it is likely that your initial provider, whether it is a clinic, pharmacy, or primary care provider, is responsible for it. administration of another injection.
When will Pfizer have booster doses?
As Pfizer officials plan to present data, results and other documents to public health officials this week, you may be wondering if a third booster dose is imminent. Dr Fauci explained that approval might not be as quick for drug companies as it did last winter.
“There’s a lot of work going on to look at this in real time to see if we might need a boost. But at the moment, given the data the CDC and the FDA have, they don’t think that we need to tell people right now, you need to be boosted, ”he told CNN.
Pfizer officials have reportedly reported that it is currently in the process of getting approval for its booster vaccine, as reported by CNN, and that it’s fishing to receive approval in August. He will soon release additional data and results on the effectiveness of his vaccine over time as researchers continue to determine whether Americans really need additional vaccines this year.
Does that mean you will be able to sign up for another Pfizer shot in August? Not necessarily. Even though FDA officials grant emergency clearance earlier this month, health experts have already said Good Housekeeping that the distribution of additional doses can be based on the priority of risk groups. This means that those who are past a certain age or have pre-existing conditions that put them at high risk for serious illnesses from COVID-19 can potentially be the first to receive these booster shots.
It’s too early to know when and if Pfizer’s latest rollout will go this way, but it’s definitely something to keep in mind when planning things like end-of-summer travel, back-to-school, and the holiday season. in autumn and winter.
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