The latest Covid boosters are expected to receive approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as soon as Monday. These boosters will be accompanied by the seasonal flu vaccine and shots to protect infants and older adults from R.S.V., a potentially lethal respiratory virus. On Tuesday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will hold an advisory meeting to discuss who should receive the new shots, which are developed by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna. Following the CDC’s decision, millions of doses will be distributed to pharmacies, clinics, and health systems across the country within days.
The introduction of these preventive measures may indicate the possibility of avoiding a winter surge in Covid cases that overwhelms hospitals. However, there is still uncertainty as last year’s updated Covid vaccine was administered to only 20 percent of U.S. adults. Although some experts are not overly concerned about this statistic due to a decrease in Covid deaths and a higher vaccination rate among older Americans, others see this as an opportunity to protect more vulnerable individuals from severe illness or death.
Dr. Marcus Plescia, chief medical officer of the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials, expressed optimism about the availability of effective tools to combat Covid. However, the challenge lies in getting people comfortable with using these tools. The transition from referring to the new shots as boosters to positioning them as an annual immunization effort, similar to the flu vaccine, may be a response to concerns about vaccine fatigue among some Americans.
This year’s vaccine campaign is unique as it follows the expiration of the public health emergency in May. In previous years, the U.S. government provided hundreds of millions of vaccine doses free of charge. However, this year, private insurance and government payers like Medicare are expected to cover the cost of vaccines for the majority of Americans. There is uncertainty regarding whether hospitals, clinics, and pharmacies in the private market will be able to accurately estimate the demand for the new shots.
Another concern is the 23 million uninsured adults in the country. The Biden administration plans to offer the Covid vaccine at no cost to these individuals through local clinics and major pharmacies. However, experts worry about how effectively this population will be informed about the availability and locations of the new shots.
The availability of the latest shots coincides with a slight increase in Covid hospitalizations and deaths, although the numbers are not as high as in previous years. To encourage vaccination, the Biden administration intends to promote the simultaneous administration of Covid and flu shots, a practice that has been deemed safe. Major vaccine makers, who will be marketing the Covid doses commercially for the first time, are expected to participate in this messaging effort.
Retailers like Walgreens and CVS already have updated flu and R.S.V. shots in stock, and once the Covid vaccine receives approval, they will have the new shots available as soon as possible. The shots will be provided at no cost to eligible individuals according to CDC guidelines.
Priority populations for vaccination will likely include individuals aged 65 and older, as well as those who are immunocompromised or have underlying medical conditions that increase their vulnerability to severe illness from the virus. Nursing homes, which previously received vaccines through major drugstore chains, now rely on their long-term-care pharmacies for supply. However, many nursing homes have fallen behind on booster rates.
The new Covid vaccines target the XBB.1.5 variant, which was the dominant variant during the formulation and testing process. Although the virus has displayed various variants over time, experts believe that the latest shots should provide protection against severe infection.
Initial concerns about the vaccine’s effectiveness against highly mutated variants have proven unfounded. Independent labs and the CDC have reviewed studies and confirmed that the vaccine remains effective. While the updated vaccines are not expected to completely prevent mild cases of Covid, they should reduce the risk of severe illness, hospitalization, or death.
As with previous shots, the updated ones are not expected to provide 100 percent protection against infection. However, they have demonstrated significant efficacy in reducing the number of vaccinated individuals who become sick compared to those who are not immunized.
The latest mRNA vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna, known as monovalent vaccines, specifically target the XBB.1.5 variant of Omicron. Unlike earlier boosters, these vaccines do not offer protection against the original virus from Wuhan. However, experts believe that they should provide adequate protection against many of Omicron’s variants.
Pfizer and Moderna have reported positive responses to the newest circulating variants, although Moderna’s initial data is the only one that has been released to the public. Researchers continue to study the vaccines’ effectiveness against new variants, with the FDA mainly reviewing results from animal and smaller human studies.
Regulators are also considering granting authorization for a booster dose from Novavax, which uses a different technology for its coronavirus vaccine. Authorization for this shot may be forthcoming.
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