US health authorities on Wednesday authorized the new version of the COVID-19 vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna specifically targeting the Omicron variant, in order to quickly begin a new recall campaign.
The two updated vaccines are authorized for a booster dose, from the age of 12 for that of Pfizer, and from the age of 18 for that of Moderna, said the American Medicines Agency (FDA) in a press release.
This new generation of anti-COVID vaccine targets both the original strain of the coronavirus and the BA.4 and BA.5 lineages of the Omicron variant.
These vaccines should “provide increased protection against the currently circulating Omicron variant,” the FDA wrote.
Earlier this summer, the US Department of Health announced that it had purchased 105 million doses from Pfizer, and 66 million from Moderna, for use over the fall and winter.
Vaccines are yet to be recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
A committee of independent experts is to be convened by the CDC to discuss it on Thursday. Then the director of this agency, Rochelle Walensky, will be responsible for giving the final green light.
This new version of the vaccines could thus potentially be available as early as next week in the country.
The vaccines currently in circulation were for the moment based on the initial strain of the virus which appeared in Wuhan in China, but they gradually proved to be less effective against the variants which appeared over time, due to the rapid evolution of the virus. .
Unlike the Alpha and Delta variants, which had eventually faltered, Omicron and its sub-variants have gradually dominated contaminations during the year 2022 worldwide.
Pfizer and Moderna have also submitted an authorization request for this updated version of their vaccine to the European Medicines Agency (EMA).