EMA: Adapted corona vaccines are also good for initial vaccination

The adapted corona vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna, which until now have only been used as booster vaccines, can also be used as a starter vaccination against the virus. The European Medicines Agency (EMA) announced this decision in Amsterdam on Tuesday.

These are the so-called bivalent vaccines, which are intended to protect against the original Sars-CoV-2 and the omicron sublines BA.4 and BA.5. Until now, these adapted mRNA vaccines could only be used as a booster vaccination.

After evaluating the data, the EMA has now determined that the vaccine also works in people who have not yet been vaccinated against corona and have not yet been infected with the virus. The vaccines are as safe as Pfizer’s and Moderna’s original corona vaccines, the regulator said. EU countries can now decide for themselves whether they want to use the modified vaccines as a basic vaccination.