PENNSYLVANIA, USA — It’s going to be a busy fall for the FDA as health experts make a big push to get booster shots in arms
The FDA has three meetings scheduled starting next week to discuss several vaccine related topics. Specifically, one meeting will focus on potential booster doses for Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines.
Johnson & Johnson applied for emergency use authorization for its COVID-19 booster on Oct. 5. This comes just days after a study found the single-shot vaccine was only 71% effective against hospitalization.
J&J says a second dose, or booster, of its COVID-19 vaccine is 94% effective in protecting against symptomatic infection and 100% effective against severe illness.
The FDA will also consider Pfizer’s request to make its vaccine available to kids 5 to 11-years-old. U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy has said this issue is a top priority, as children under 18 currently account for nearly 27% of all new weekly COVID-19 cases.
"The COVID-19 vaccines are the FDA's top priority," he said. "And they know the urgency with which our children need vaccines. They will be guided by science and safety as they evaluate vaccine data for children. That's what's reassuring to me as a parent, and that is why when a vaccine is available for kids five through 11, I will look forward to taking my son to get vaccinated."
The American Academy of Pediatrics says children make up 15.7% of all U.S. COVID-19 cases, but cases have been particularly on the rise among kids in recent months amid the highly infectious Delta variant’s spread.