EMA Recommends Updating Current COVID-19 Vaccines for XBB Sub-Variant – Advice from International Regulatory Organizations and WHO

The advice is to focus the update of the vaccines on a sub-variant of the Omikron variant: XBB

To better protect against new subvariants of the coronavirus, it is wise to adjust the current corona vaccines before the autumn of 2023. This is the advice of the European medicine agency EMA to vaccine manufacturers.

Current vaccines are still effective in preventing hospitalization, serious illness and death from COVID-19. Protection against the virus does decrease over time. The monovalent vaccines target one variant of the virus.

The advice is to focus the update of the vaccines on a sub-variant of the Omikron variant: XBB. This sub-variant is globally dominant.

The advice was prompted by recent meetings of international regulatory organizations and the World Health Organization (WHO).

The Minister of Health (VWS) is responsible for the COVID vaccination strategy and has requested advice from the Health Council.

Bron: CBG-MEB

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