COVID 19 Tech

Vaccine makers announce slowdowns for omicron-specific booster

Enlarge / Vials of undiluted Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine. (credit: Getty | BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI ) Vaccine makers are pushing back when omicron-specific COVID-19 vaccines could be ready for use. The shots were initially expected in March. Delays in the vaccines’ development come as cases of omicron have been dropping rapidly, and several animal studies have suggested […]

COVID 19 Tech

FDA, Pfizer abandon 2-shot COVID vaccine in kids under 5, citing new data

Enlarge / A child getting a vaccination on February 19, 2021, in Bonn, Germany. (credit: Getty | Ute Grabowsky) The Food and Drug Administration, Pfizer, and BioNTech announced on Friday that they are abandoning plans to pursue the authorization of a two-dose regimen of COVID-19 vaccines for children ages six months to four years. Instead, […]

COVID 19 Tech

FDA authorizes booster doses for 12- to 15-year-olds, shortens interval for adults

Enlarge / A health worker administers a third dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine to an elderly resident at Ichilov medical center in Tel Aviv, Israel, on Monday, Aug. 2, 2021. (credit: Getty | Bloomberg ) As the ultra-transmissible omicron coronavirus variant bears down on the US, the Food and Drug Administration on Monday announced […]

COVID 19 Tech

FDA authorizes Pfizer and Moderna COVID boosters for all adults

Enlarge / 19 November 2021, Hamburg: A tray of prepared syringes for booster vaccinations with Moderna’s vaccine. (credit: Getty | Picture alliance ) The Food and Drug Administration has authorized booster doses of both the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines for all people ages 18 plus up, the companies announced separately this morning. The boosters […]

COVID 19 Tech

COVID vaccines for kids 5-11 up for preorder Wednesday ahead of FDA review

Enlarge / A thirteen-year-old celebrates getting the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine in Hartford, Connecticut, on May 13, 2021. (credit: Getty | JOSEPH PREZIOSO ) Starting tomorrow, October 20, states and other jurisdictions will be able to preorder doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine formulated for children ages 5 to 11, according to a federal planning document […]

COVID 19 Tech

FDA advisors unanimously green-light Moderna boosters for people 65+, high-risk

Enlarge / The Food and Drug Administration headquarters in White Oak, Maryland. (credit: Getty | Congressional Quarterly) As expected, a committee of independent advisors for the Food and Drug Administration voted unanimously (19-to-0) Thursday afternoon in favor of authorizing a booster dose of Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine for certain groups. The groups flagged for boosting are […]

COVID 19 Tech

Biden administration expects J&J boosters in the next few weeks

Enlarge / Boxes of Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen COVID-19 vaccine at a vaccination site in Florida. (credit: Getty | Paul Hennessy) Johnson & Johnson plans to seek authorization for a booster dose for its one-shot COVID-19 vaccine early this week, according to a report by The New York Times. J&J is the last to apply […]

COVID 19 Tech

FDA approves Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine, now called Comirnaty

Enlarge / Empty Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine vials (credit: AHMAD GHARABLI) The Food and Drug Administration has granted full approval of the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, which will now be marketed as Comirnaty (koe-mir’-na-tee), the agency announced Monday. The vaccine’s full approval—or Biologics License Application (BLA)—applies for use of a two-dose regimen, given three weeks apart, in […]