WASHINGTON (AP) — Drug maker Moderna asked the Food and Drug Administration on Thursday to allow a fourth shot of its COVID-19 vaccine as a booster dose for all adults.
The request is broader than rival pharmaceutical company Pfizer’s request earlier this week for the regulator to approve booster shots for all older adults.
In a press release, the company said its request for approval for all adults was made “to provide flexibility” to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and healthcare providers to determine the “appropriate use” of the second booster dose of the mRNA vaccine. “including for individuals at increased risk of contracting COVID-19 due to age or comorbidities.”
US officials are laying the groundwork for delivering additional booster doses to strengthen vaccine protection against serious illness and death from COVID-19. The White House is sounding the alarm that it needs Congress to “urgently” approve additional funding for the federal government to get more doses of COVID-19 vaccines, either for additional boosters or for specific variant vaccines.
U.S. health officials are currently recommending an initial two-dose series of Moderna vaccine and a repeat dose a few months later.
Moderna said its request for an additional dose was based on “recently published data from the United States and Israel following the introduction of Omicron.”
On Tuesday, Pfizer and its partner BioNTech asked U.S. regulators to allow an additional booster dose of their COVID-19 vaccine for older adults, saying data from Israel suggests older people will benefit.