FDA approves new COVID-19 vaccines

The Food and Drug Administration has approved updated COVID-19 vaccines in the midst of a summer surge of the illness.

The vaccines are from Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech and will be available in a few days, CNN reported. Both companies said that once approval was granted they would be able to ship the vaccines immediately, The New York Times reported.

The FDA said the new vaccines are for people 5 years old and older who are eligible for a booster, as long as it has been at least two months since their last shot, CNN reported.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended in June that everyone over the age of 6 months get an updated coronavirus vaccine and a flu shot this year.

The updated vaccines target KP.2 which started spreading in the spring, but officials said that the latest prevalent strains are close to that one that the new vaccinations should provide protection, the Times reported.

The CDC said that coronavirus cases around the country are increasing with the primary variant being KP.3.1.1, which is from the omicron version. The variant accounted for between 31% and 43% of the cases in the two-week period ending on Aug. 17.

Health officials said positive tests, emergency department visits and hospitalizations are elevated especially for adults 65 and older and children under the age of 2.

A third vaccine developed by Novavax, which targets the JN.1 variant, is awaiting FDA approval, the Times reported.

Once you get the new vaccine, the Times said that it takes about a week or two for the antibodies to start multiplying and defend against the virus with the peak coming in about a month.

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