PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — A panel of U.S. health advisers has endorsed booster doses of Johnson & Johnson's single-shot COVID-19 vaccine.
The Food and Drug Administration panel said Friday that the booster should be offered at least two months after immunization but didn't suggest a firm time.
The FDA isn't bound by the vote, but its ultimate decision could help expand the nation's booster campaign.
Booster doses of Pfizer's vaccine began last month for people at high risk of COVID-19.
On Thursday the panel gave Moderna's booster shot the green light.
According to Johnson & Johnson’s studies, the booster offers significant protection against variants and is effective at keeping people from becoming seriously sick. But in the FDA’s analysis, regulators had questions about how effective those studies were.
Yesterday, the panel unanimously recommended the Moderna booster for those 65 and above or those at high risk. Like Pfizer, it isn’t a blanket recommendation for all adults. Dr. Paul Offit with Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, one of the FDA panel committee members, says he is good with that.
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"I'm impressed by the fact that we continue to have excellent protection against moderate to severe disease in the country, through delta and for all age groups, and I just think we continue to send wrong messages out there."
He says all this booster talk can overshadow just how safe and effective the vaccines are without additional shots.
