With the Food and Drug Administration’s clearance, Pfizer and Moderna are set to begin shipping millions of doses. A third U.S. manufacturer, Novavax, expects its modified vaccine version to be available a little later. ...
The agency’s decision came a bit earlier than last year’s rollout of updated COVID-19 vaccines, as a summer wave of the virus continues in most of the country. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention already has recommended this fall’s shot for everyone age 6 months and older. Vaccinations could be available within days.
While most Americans have some degree of immunity from prior infections or vaccinations or both, that protection wanes. Last fall’s shots targeted a different part of the coronavirus family tree, a strain that’s no longer circulating -- and CDC data shows only about 22.5% of adults and 14% of children received it.
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