Wednesday, 06 April 2022 – 23:04 WIB
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Covid-19 Omicron variant. PHOTO: ANTARA/Andi Firdaus
jpnn.com – The current Covid-19 vaccine is ineffective against the Omicron subvariant BA.2, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said Wednesday (6/4).
The statement follows a meeting of external experts on an FDA panel to discuss changes to future booster vaccine doses.
However, the FDA says that a booster shot of the vaccine protects against serious Covid-19 illness compared to the initial two doses.
US health officials in late March approved a second dose of Moderna and Pfizer booster vaccines for people aged 50 and over, citing data showing decreased immunity and the risks posed by the Omicron variant of Covid-19.
“Today’s discussion is a much bigger discussion. It’s a discussion of what we do with the whole population and what we do when we think the virus has evolved further,” said Peter Marks, director of the FDA’s Center for Biological Evaluation and Research.
A fourth dose of Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine lowered Covid-19 rates among the elderly, but protection against infection was not long-lasting, a large Israeli study showed Tuesday (5/4). (ant/dil/jpnn)
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