COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are declining, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday that those numbers should go down over the next four weeks if vaccination rates continue at the pace they are right now.
Meanwhile, starting Thursday, a Food and Drug Administration advisory panel will meet to discuss booster shots of the Johnson & Johnson and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines.
On Thursday, the panel will focus on Moderna’s application to offer boosters. The booster would be half the original dose of the vaccine and is recommended for people at least six months after their original shot
Then, on Friday, the panel will consider J&J’s request for boosters. According to J&J, the extra dose can be given as early as two months after the first shot.
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But data is limited. Researchers argue the test used by J&J may not have been sensitive enough to prove effectiveness.
Also on Friday, the FDA will take up whether it’s beneficial to mix shots, meaning if you got Pfizer the first time, can you get a Moderna booster.
If the panel gives the thumbs-up to boosters this week, shots could start going out by the end of the following week.