CDC Cautions State Health Officials
More on FDA News Release:
The focus on a Pfizer booster presents real-world challenges for front-line health officials. About 81 million people have received shots made by Moderna and Johnson & Johnson, but their eligibility for a booster was not addressed during the FDA advisory committee meeting and may not be decided for weeks.
On Sunday, Dr. Anthony Fauci, Chief Medical Adviser to the White House COVID-19 response, said data for an extra shot of the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines is a few weeks away from being presented to the FDA. “We’re working on that right now, to get the data to the FDA so they can examine it and make a determination about the boosters for those people,” Fauci said on NBC’s Meet the Press. “They’re not being left behind by any means.”
The CDC cautioned state health officials last week not to give booster shots until the FDA and CDC take action.
In an email sent to states Thursday, the CDC wrote: “As we have informed you previously, the administration has been making preparations to begin a COVID-19 booster shot rollout as early as the week of September 20. Any implementation of booster programs should begin after FDA takes a regulatory action and ACIP and CDC make clinical recommendations for use.”
