Mar 18, 2022 - Health

Moderna asks FDA to authorize additional booster shot for all adults

Moderna vaccine. Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images

Moderna has asked the FDA for an emergency authorization that would allow all adults to receive a second COVID-19 booster, the company announced on Thursday.

Why it matters: The request is likely to intensify an ongoing scientific debate over how long protection from the two most-used vaccines in the U.S. lasts in the face of new variants.

The big picture: The move towards a second booster shot is an attempt to combat waning immunity that occurs several months after a first booster shot, notes the Washington Post, which first reported that Pfizer-BioNTech were seeking an emergency authorization.

Between the lines: Moderna's request is broader than Pfizer and BioNTech's, which sought to authorize a second booster for people 65 and older.

State of play: Fourth doses are already authorized for some immunocompromised people.

What they're saying: The request "was made to provide flexibility" to healthcare providers, Moderna said in a statement.

  • Moderna president Stephen Hoge previously said that a fourth shot would likely only be necessary for elderly and immunocompromised people but not for the general public.
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