Next U.S. Booster Campaign Faces Delays, Lack of Funds
According to the data, it may delay the following U.S. COVID-19 booster rollout due to a lack of federal funding and declining interest. To The keeper.
“We’re way behind the G8,” Eric Topol, director of the Scripps Broadcasting Research Institute, told the news outlet.
Many Americans still have not received a booster shot, and about half of those who qualify have not yet had one. According to Topol, the deployment of the first burst of booster shots “just fell off a cliff.”
The Biden administration is also struggling to get funding from Congress to pay for ongoing coronavirus initiatives. They dropped a $15 billion funding package for tests, treatments, and vaccines from a major spending bill before Congress. While health officials spoke with lawmakers on Wednesday about the need for COVID-19 funding. Republicans said we should make equal cuts elsewhere. To politics.
The funds are now sufficient to give a fourth dose of the vaccine to immunocompromised people who are already eligible for another shot and the elderly, the White House said Wednesday. However, stockpiles of the vaccine would not be enough to run a broader booster campaign.
“We have almost no money to spend on a pandemic, and it’s terrible because we don’t know what is waiting for us around the corner,” said Katherine Wallace, an epidemiologist at the University of Illinois. The keeper.
The lack of funding could affect the future deployment of the first batch of vaccines and research into updated vaccines and treatments.
“Maybe we will see a new variant that avoids all of this, and we need a new vaccine,” Wallace said. “That will be a problem.”
The Biden administration plans to offer a second booster dose of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccine for individuals aged 50 and over, which the FDA may approve this week. In mid-March. Pfizer asked the FDA to approve a second booster series for people aged 65 and over, while Moderna requested a second booster for people aged 18 and over.
According to the agency, about 45% of eligible Americans have received a booster shot. The latest CDC data increases to 67% at age 65 and older. When boosters were first approved, they were limited to immunocompromised people. The elderly, but they were open to children aged 12 and over.
The FDA’s independent advisory committee will meet on April 6 to discuss booster clearance policies for the future, especially in the case of new options. The Group does not plan to vote; the keeper reported but focuses on the structure for boosters.
Topol said vaccination campaigns should be a priority with another potential wave on the horizon due to the contagious BA.2 variant. Vaccines can take weeks before they are fully effective, so people should get their next shots right away.
“It’s good that there is a lull in the spread of the virus – it’s wonderful,” he said. “This is the time to defend against the next wave, one, two, or more.”
