The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is planning to allow a booster dose against COVID-19 to be administered from a different pharmaceutical than the one initially received,
mixing different vaccines
, according to the press. people familiar with the plan this Monday.
Health authorities would not recommend a particular additional vaccine, whether from Pfizer, Moderna or Johnson & Johnson, although
doses from the same pharmaceutical company should be maintained if available,
The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal reported. .
The additional injection of Pfizer-BioNTech has already been authorized for groups most vulnerable to the virus from six months after the first dose.
This week the FDA is expected to do the same with the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson boosters, and then allow the combination of doses.
What Experts Say About Mixing Vaccines
A group of researchers presented the findings of a federally funded study of combining different injections to an expert committee advising the FDA last Friday that concluded that mixing vaccines is effective and safe.
So far the only additional authorized dose is that of Pfizer for people over 65 years of age and people vulnerable due to their health conditions or their jobs.Rogelio V. Solis / AP
The study, conducted by the National Institutes of Health, found that those who had received a single dose of Johnson & Johnson and then had another booster of Moderna
increased their antibody levels 76 times in 15 days
.
Those who had instead the additional injection from Johnson & Johnson only raised them four times.
Experts have clarified, however,
that they relied on small groups of volunteers and their findings were short-term
.
The antibodies were calculated, but not the levels of immune cells prepared to attack the coronavirus.
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The researchers caution, in this regard, that their results should not be used to support that a particular combination is recommended.
When reinforcements may be available
Health authorities will give their opinion on the additional doses of Moderna and Johnson & Johnson on Wednesday.
The next step in the emergency authorization process is for a committee of experts from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to issue their opinion this Thursday.
Then the agency makes its own recommendation about vaccines.
If approved, there
would be millions of people eligible
for an extra injection in the United States
by the end of the week
.
The possibility of combining vaccines increases the number of people who can be immunized.
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Experts have warned that providers need flexibility to offer different vaccines as boosters because patients may have had adverse reactions after their first injections or have other new concerns.
They may also not have access to the same vaccine that the patient initially received.
From a public health perspective, there is a clear need in some situations for people to receive a different vaccine. "
Amanda Cohn CDC Official
"From a public health perspective, there is a clear need in some situations for people to get a different vaccine," said Dr. Amanda Cohn, a senior official at the CDC in a meeting Friday.
State officials are also in favor of mixing injections for reasons such as
supply, patient choice, and how easy it is to administer.
Authorities have indicated that the federal government will cover the cost of a different booster dose only if it has FDA approval.
Regulators are expected to follow the same approach they took with the Pfizer vaccine, authorizing a
Moderna
booster
about six months after the second dose
.
Johnson & Johnson
patients
, meanwhile, may be allowed an extra injection within two months
of receiving the single dose of the vaccine.
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As for
who the beneficiaries would be
, there would also be differences, which can be confusing.
The FDA could authorize the Johnson & Johnson booster for those over 18, but Moderna only for those over 65 and at high risk, as happened with Pfizer.
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Just over 15 million people have been fully vaccinated with the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, compared to 69.5 million for Moderna and 104.5 million for Pfizer-BioNTech.