An influential federal advisory panel has overwhelmingly rejected a plan to give booster shots of Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine to most Americans, but it endorsed the extra shots for those who are 65 or older or run a high risk of severe disease. “I don’t think a booster dose is going to significantly contribute to controlling the pandemic,” said Dr. Cody Meissner of Tufts University. Sharon Alroy-Preis of Israel’s Ministry of Health said the booster dose improves protection tenfold against infection in people 60 and older. A company study of 44,000 people showed effectiveness against symptomatic COVID-19 was 96% two months after the second dose but had dropped to 84% by around six months. They said boosters would be dispensed eight months after the second dose of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines.

Source: Los Angeles Times September 17, 2021 14:45 UTC