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Most likely, the United States has entered a new phase in which it will get a COVID-19 vaccine every year, just like a flu shot, federal health officials said Tuesday.
That the message from Biden’s administrative officials at a press conference on COVID-19, just days after the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention approved new coronavirus recalls from Pfizer and Moderna that target both the original 2019 strain and the sub-variants omicron BA. 4 and BA. 5.
The boosters are the first vaccine updates since the pandemic began in early 2020.
“This makes us, the United States, the first country with new vaccines that conform to the edition of the omicron variant that is lately dominant, dominant here in the United States and around the world,” said White House COVID-19 coordinator Dr. Brown. Ashish Jha. “For the first time since December 2020, those vaccines have resisted the virus. “
Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra said the government began shipping millions of doses on Friday and that by the end of the week, more than 90 percent of Americans will live within five miles of a drug site. vaccination provided. More information on where recalls are available can be found at immunizations. gov.
And the rules for COVID-19 vaccines are less difficult to follow. Anyone 12 years of age or older who has not been vaccinated in the past two months or who has become inflamed with COVID-19 in recent months gets an updated booster, according to the CDC. People vaccinated for the first time will continue to receive the initial vaccine.
Saying that COVID coverage can now justify only one opportunity per year, officials issued some warnings.
People at higher risk, the elderly or those with certain underlying conditions, may still need more injections, they said. And Jha warned about the option of “new variants of curveballs. “
Previous versions of the vaccine were very effective in preventing serious illness and death, but decreased over time and were less effective in preventing infections as the virus mutated.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and chief medical adviser to President Joe Biden, said knowledge of the latest edition of the vaccine, as well as clinical trials of a bivalent BA. 1 vaccine, imply that the new vaccine provides “greater coverage against lately circulating strains than the original vaccines. “; although, he added, “it is difficult to wait at this level how much greater this coverage will be. “
However, Fauci said that “receiving the recommended vaccine dose is imperative for optimal coverage against COVID-19, especially for the elderly. “
There are no new protection issues related to the updated vaccines, he added.
While the virus is constantly evolving, Jha noted that while long-term mutations come from the subvariant BA. 5, which accounts for 89 percent of new infections in the United States, “this updated vaccine will continue to have a very high degree of protection. “
COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations have declined in recent days, yet the seven-day average of deaths is 375, which, according to CDC Director Dr. Susan S. Rochelle Walensky, is “in my opinion, too high for a vaccine-preventable disease. “
About two-thirds of Americans won their dose of the number one vaccine, but less than a portion of them grew stronger.
Jha said it’s “a smart idea” for other people to get a flu shot and COVID shot in a single visit.
“In fact, that’s why God gave us two arms: one for the flu vaccine and the other for the COVID vaccine,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Department of Health and Human Services is stepping up efforts to succeed in other people over 50, especially as the Thanksgiving holiday approaches, Becerra said.
Jha said the administration’s purpose is to make sure COVID-19 vaccines remain loose this fall. Meanwhile, the Biden administration is asking Congress for $22. 4 billion in emergency investments for COVID-19, which it says is needed to vaccinate and treat Americans. drive studies and progression of next-generation vaccines and therapies, and the global response.
Jha said the FDA is working with brands on updated number one vaccines, as well as boosters for children under 12, but did not have a timeline of when they might be available.