We have been getting many questions about a booster or 3rd dose of the COVID Vaccine. I know its been rather confusing this past month with information conflicting daily. I am hoping to clear this up as much as possible.
On August 13 the FDA, under emergency use authorization, approved the Pfizer and Moderna booster vaccine for those who are moderately to severely immunocompromised, which represents 2.7% of the population. People falling into this group are those with hematologic cancers, on active treatment cancer drugs, organ transplant recipients, advanced HIV/AIDS, and on immunosuppressant medications including steroids for auto-immune conditions. This was a very straightforward authorization; though in practice many patients who did not meet these criteria received booster shots, either due to the laxity of the vaccine giver or perhaps to some stretching of the truth by the recipient.
Then on August 18, President Biden announced that booster shots would be available after September 20 to all Americans eight months after their second Pfizer/Moderna vaccine — PROVIDED REVIEW AND APPROVAL BY THE FDA.
This past Friday, an advisory panel to the FDA which reviewed pertinent data regarding questionable waning immunity to the Pfizer vaccine (there is no such data yet for Moderna) pared down the Biden Administration’s plan. The advisory panel is recommending to the FDA that the Pfizer booster should
only be given to those over 65, those at high risk for severe COVID illness, or those who are likely to be exposed such as health care workers or teachers. They recommend the booster at 6 months rather than the 8 months proposed by the Biden Administration. They did not include any recommendation regarding the Moderna vaccine, in part due to lack of booster data and also that Moderna appears to be better than Pfizer at preventing severe illness.
Though the FDA generally follows the recommendations of this advisory committee, stay tuned for their final recommendation. Our office is not able to get the Pfizer vaccine from Missouri in small enough quantities that would prevent wastage. If you need to find a Pfizer vaccine, go to
Vaccines.gov.
If you received the Moderna or J&J, we are awaiting the data regarding efficacy and safety of booster shots.
Remember that vaccination is still remarkable for protecting against severe illness requiring hospitalization. Primary vaccination combined with mask wearing and limiting indoor exposure in group settings remains the best way to stay healthy.