The issue of booster shots is increasingly cloudy. Waning vaccine effectiveness and rapid evolution of the virus have raised questions about whether it would be wise for those under 50 years old to get a second booster now or wait for a new generation of shots due in a few months.
Booster shot confusion: get them now, or wait for better?
For people over 50 years old and those who are immunocompromised, a second booster is unquestionably a good idea. So far, however, vaccine uptake has been poor. In the age group of 50 to 64 years old, only 8.8 percent of the eligible population opted for the second booster. Only 22 percent of those eligible 65 and older got a second booster, and they are the most at risk. This is a sorry record and it ought to be a priority to improve the situation.
As of now, a second booster has not been approved for those under 50 years old, except for the immune compromised. The administration is debating whether to expand the eligibility at a time when the spreading BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants are propelling another wave of infections, and hospital admissions are again climbing. The subvariants are highly transmissible, better at immune escape and are causing reinfections. Among those 18 to 49 years old, more than two thirds got the primary shots, but only 27 percent got the first booster. Would they go for a second booster?
We know that vaccine effectiveness wanes. Those who had their last booster more than six months ago are increasingly vulnerable. But what to do about it is not clear-cut. The existing boosters are aimed at earlier variants, and may provide less protection against the BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants, which now account for 80 percent of cases in the United States. On June 30, the Food and Drug Administration recommended vaccine manufacturers build a bivalent, or two-component, vaccine for the autumn, aimed at earlier strains plus the newer subvariants. The U.S. government has put in an order for 105 million doses of vaccine from Pfizer for the booster, but no one is certain when they will be available; maybe October, or maybe later. Nor is it certain how effective a bivalent booster will be, nor what the prevailing variant will be later this year. Moderna says it has achieved some promising results. Does it make sense for the under-50 population to get a second booster now?
White House officials said in a July 12 briefing that getting a second booster now will not preclude getting the updated booster in the autumn. The final government decision about boosters for those under 50 years old will have to come from the FDA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and as always, they should apply the most rigorous scientific judgment. The choice will also be up to individuals. Those who are young, healthy and willing to use other mitigation measures might wait. But expanded eligibility now for a second booster for people under 50 would help protect first responders, essential workers and those who must mingle with large crowds. That seems worth it, rather than just leaving the doses on the shelf.
Source: WP
