Today,
public health and medical experts from the U.S. Department of Health
and Human Services (HHS) released the following statement on the
Administration’s plan for COVID-19 booster shots for the American
people.
The statement is attributable to Dr. Rochelle Walensky, Director of
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC); Dr. Janet
Woodcock, Acting Commissioner, Food and Drug Administration (FDA); Dr.
Vivek Murthy, U.S. Surgeon General; Dr. Francis Collins, Director of the
National Institutes of Health (NIH); Dr. Anthony Fauci, Chief Medical
Advisor to President Joe Biden and Director of the National Institute of
Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID); Dr. Rachel Levine, Assistant
Secretary for Health; Dr. David Kessler, Chief Science Officer for the
COVID-19 Response; and Dr. Marcella Nunez-Smith, Chair of the COVID-19
Health Equity Task Force:
“The COVID-19 vaccines authorized in the United States continue to be
remarkably effective in reducing risk of severe disease,
hospitalization, and death, even against the widely circulating Delta
variant. Recognizing that many vaccines are associated with a reduction
in protection over time, and acknowledging that additional vaccine doses
could be needed to provide long lasting protection, we have been
analyzing the scientific data closely from the United States and around
the world to understand how long this protection will last and how we
might maximize this protection. The available data make very clear that
protection against SARS-CoV-2 infection begins to decrease over time
following the initial doses of vaccination, and in association with the
dominance of the Delta variant, we are starting to see evidence of
reduced protection against mild and moderate disease. Based on our
latest assessment, the current protection against severe disease,
hospitalization, and death could diminish in the months ahead,
especially among those who are at higher risk or were vaccinated during
the earlier phases of the vaccination rollout. For that reason, we
conclude that a booster shot will be needed to maximize vaccine-induced
protection and prolong its durability.
“We have developed a plan to begin offering these booster shots this
fall subject to FDA conducting an independent evaluation and
determination of the safety and effectiveness of a third dose of the
Pfizer and Moderna mRNA vaccines and CDC’s Advisory Committee on
Immunization Practices (ACIP) issuing booster dose recommendations based
on a thorough review of the evidence. We are prepared to offer booster
shots for all Americans beginning the week of September 20 and starting 8
months after an individual’s second dose. At that time, the individuals
who were fully vaccinated earliest in the vaccination rollout,
including many health care providers, nursing home residents, and other
seniors, will likely be eligible for a booster. We would also begin
efforts to deliver booster shots directly to residents of long-term care
facilities at that time, given the distribution of vaccines to this
population early in the vaccine rollout and the continued increased risk
that COVID-19 poses to them.
“We also anticipate booster shots will likely be needed for people
who received the Johnson & Johnson (J&J) vaccine. Administration
of the J&J vaccine did not begin in the U.S. until March 2021, and
we expect more data on J&J in the next few weeks. With those data in
hand, we will keep the public informed with a timely plan for J&J
booster shots as well.
“Our top priority remains staying ahead of the virus and protecting
the American people from COVID-19 with safe, effective, and long-lasting
vaccines especially in the context of a constantly changing virus and
epidemiologic landscape. We will continue to follow the science on a
daily basis, and we are prepared to modify this plan should new data
emerge that requires it.
“We also want to emphasize the ongoing urgency of vaccinating the
unvaccinated in the U.S. and around the world. Nearly all the cases of
severe disease, hospitalization, and death continue to occur among those
not yet vaccinated at all. We will continue to ramp up efforts to
increase vaccinations here at home and to ensure people have accurate
information about vaccines from trusted sources. We will also continue
to expand our efforts to increase the supply of vaccines for other
countries, building further on the more than 600 million doses we have
already committed to donate globally.”
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