U.S. regulators have authorized updated COVID-19 boosters, the first to directly target today's most common omicron strain
will blunt yet another winter surge — and help tamp down the BA.5 omicron relative that continues to spread widely.
The updated boosters are only for people who have already had their primary vaccinations, using the original vaccines. Doses made by Pfizer and its partner BioNTech are for anyone 12 and older while Moderna's updated shots are for adults — if it has been at least two months since their last primary vaccination or their latest booster. They're not to be used for initial vaccinations.
The big question is whether people weary of vaccinations will roll up their sleeves again. Just half of vaccinated Americans got the first recommended booster dose, and only a third of those 50 and older who were urged to get a second booster did so. Here’s the rub: The original vaccines still offer strong protection against severe disease and death from COVID-19 for generally healthy people, especially if they got that important first booster dose. It’s not clear just how much more benefit an updated booster will bring — beyond a temporary jump in antibodies capable of fending off an omicron infection.
“One needs to refresh the immune system with what is actually circulating,” Marks said. That's why FDA also is no longer authorizing boosters made with the original recipe for those 12 and older.
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