WASHINGTON – The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) proposed to simplify the vaccination schedule against COVID-19 and that the doses be annual, as is the case with the common flu.
In a series of documents published this Monday on its website, the US regulator indicated that it is possible that most of the population only needs an annual dose to protect themselves from the disease, regardless of what they have previously received.
The FDA notes that young people who have not been exposed to COVID-19, the elderly, or those who are immunocompromised may need two doses per year.
The idea of this body would be to evaluate the possible new variants of the virus that are circulating during the year and choose one that it believes will be prevalent the following fall to develop the vaccine, as is usually done with the flu.
In its documents, the agency advocates creating a single composition for the vaccine, instead of what it has been up to now, with a combination of monovalent sera (those used in the original covid vaccines and in the first booster) and other polyvalent ones (those of the reinforcement against omicron).
“Simplifying vaccine composition should reduce complexity, decrease vaccine administration errors due to the complexity of different vial presentations, and potentially increase vaccination compliance by allowing clearer communication,” details the FDA in its writings.
The FDA’s Vaccines and Biologicals Advisory Committee, an independent body made up of scientists, is expected to evaluate the future of the covid vaccine in the US on Thursday and vote on whether or not to support the regulator’s recommendations.
The test can identify and differentiate multiple respiratory viruses at the same time, detecting influenza A and B, commonly known as influenza, respiratory syncytial virus, commonly known as RSV, along with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID -19. . Results are delivered through an online portal, with follow-up by a healthcare provider for positive or invalid test results.
