The Food and Drug Administration is expected to authorize the mixing of COVID-19 vaccines when it comes to booster shots.
UPDATE: The mixing of vaccines was approved on October 26, 2021.
U.S. regulators expect to rule Wednesday on authorizing booster doses of the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccines, a Food and Drug Administration official said at a government meeting. https://t.co/eoaCLKxoC1
— The Associated Press (@AP) October 20, 2021
Via the Associated Press:
The FDA was expected to say that using the same brand for a booster was still preferable, especially for the mRNA vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna that have proved most effective against the coronavirus. The agency was still finalizing guidance for the single-shot J&J vaccine.
Preliminary results from a government study of different booster combinations found an extra dose of any type revs up levels of virus-fighting antibodies regardless of the brand people first received. But recipients of the single-dose J&J vaccination had the most dramatic response — a 76-fold and 35-fold jump in antibody levels, respectively, shortly after either a Moderna or Pfizer booster, compared to a four-fold rise after a second J&J shot.
Read the full report here.
One aspect that apparently hasn’t been decided yet is what dosage of the Moderna vaccine should be used for boosting those folks who originally received the J&J shot.
Moderna applied for its booster to be half the original dose. But the recent mix/match study used full Moderna doses. Researchers aren’t sure if a half dose would kick up a strong immunity response in J&J folks.
Breaking News: The FDA is moving to allow people to get a different Covid vaccine as a booster than the one they initially received. https://t.co/uOSPwD2fHV
— The New York Times (@nytimes) October 18, 2021