Federal health officials are considering changing the official guidelines for coronavirus vaccinations to widen the gap between doses.
Officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are thinking about extending the amount of time between the first and second vaccine doses to eight weeks.
Authorities discussed the changes Friday during a meeting of the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, a group of medical and public health experts who develop recommendations on the use of vaccines
The proposed changes would apply to the Pfizer and Moderna mRNA vaccines.
Pfizer's vaccine for COVID-19 is currently administered in two doses spaced three weeks apart, while Moderna's two doses are spaced four weeks apart.
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Dr. Sara Oliver, a member of the CDC's Epidemic Intelligence Service, said extending the interval between shots to eight weeks lowers the risk of heart inflammation, Fox News reported.
Heart inflammation is a rare side effect linked to both Pfizer's and Moderna's vaccine that most commonly affects men between the ages of 18 and 39, though the condition appears to be more common in those who received Moderna, Dr. Nicola Klein said during the CDC presentation, NBC News reported.
A decision on a revised vaccination timeline has not yet been made.
A change in the guidelines would affect roughly 33 million unvaccinated Americans between the ages of 12 and 39.
The latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows 64.1% of the U.S. population is fully vaccinated and 42.2% have received a booster dose.
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