NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is expected to fully approve Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine Monday as regulators work quickly to try and push for an even earlier expedited timeline for approval.
The New York Times on Friday reported that agency regulators were working to finish the approval process by Friday, but the "substantial amount of paperwork" and negotiations with Pfizer were likely to cause a delay until next week.
An FDA spokesperson declined to comment on the Times report.
The agency is also reportedly reviewing Moderna's two-jab vaccine for full approval — with a decision likely to come at least "several weeks after."
The ramp up to fully approve the country’s two-dose vaccines comes amid rising COVID-19 cases and as the highly contagious delta variant ravages unvaccinated Americans.
Dr. Anthony Fauci emphasized the importance of potential booster shots in an interview with WCBS 880 last Friday, as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention gave final approval for immunocompromised people. The Biden administration will also begin offering COVID-19 booster shots to all American adults starting Sept. 20.
Full approval of the vaccine could likely increase vaccine rates. A survey from the Kaiser Family Foundation found 30% of unvaccinated adults would be more likely to get vaccinated if one of the vaccines was fully approved.