The Pfizer vaccine currently has two shots that provide immunity against the novel coronavirus. The rapid spread of the contagious variants of the coronavirus led to the drug-making company, Pfizer seeks authorization to develop another booster that protects against the new coronavirus variants.
According to Pfizer, the experts see waning immunity against the virus and they will develop a third shot to boost the immunity. The company also said that they will publish the data from the trials of the third vaccine shortly. Later, the drug regulators such as European Medicines Agency and the US Food and Drug Administration will authorize the third booster to be used against the more contagious coronavirus variants. Moreover, Pfizer will seek authorization from the FDA for the emergency use of the new booster of their vaccine.
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Amid the efforts of Pfizer to get them a green signal for the third booster for their vaccine, the federal agencies of the US do not believe that it is necessary. After some time of the statement about the Pfizer vaccine, the federal agencies came forward and issues their statement as well. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the FDA, it is too soon to develop a third booster against the coronavirus.
In the statement, the FDA and the CDC said that the fully vaccinated individuals in the US do not need a third booster to prevent severe coronavirus infection right now. Recently, the World Health Organization (WHO), also mentioned that they are unsure if we need boosters against the coronavirus infection. The organization said that additional data will show if there is a need for booster vaccines against the new variants.
Pfizer and BioNTech mentioned that they observed waning immunity in the vaccinated individuals. Recently, the Israel Ministry of Health released a report that shows the efficacy of the vaccine declined in six months. It occurred after receiving the two doses of the Pfizer vaccine. The efficacy of this vaccine declined in preventing infection and coronavirus symptoms. However, its efficacy to prevent severe infection remains intact.
Israel is also struggling with the more contagious Delta variant of the coronavirus. So, these findings are according to the suggestions of Pizer and BioNTech. The report also mentions that the prevention of infection may decline further as new variants of the virus come forward. According to Pfizer, their third booster after half or a full year of the initial vaccine can maintain immunity.
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The CDC and the FDA mentioned that they will go through any new data that comes forward. This statement also mentioned that the vaccines available in the US show high efficacy against the virus. Those who received the complete dosage of the vaccine have complete immunity against severe illness. It includes the new Delta variant of the coronavirus.
The experts suggest the Americans get themselves vaccinated as soon as possible. Those who did not receive any vaccine are at risk of contracting the contagious variants of the virus. Also, they can spread the variants more rapidly across the country.
