US CDC advisers recommend updated Covid-19 vaccines for ages 6 months and older

WASHINGTON - A panel of outside experts to the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has voted unanimously to recommend the use of updated Covid-19 vaccines, as authorised or approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), in those aged six months and older for the 2024-25 immunisation campaign.

The agency’s recommendation on June 27 comes after the US FDA asked vaccine manufacturers earlier in June to

update the new shots to target the KP.2 variant if feasible,

instead of the JN.1 lineage it had sought to target earlier.

Moderna and Novavax – makers of two of the three Covid-19 vaccines – had submitted their applications to the FDA for updating the autumn 2024 season shots targeting the JN.1 strain.

Novavax said it intends to make its updated vaccine available at the start of the vaccination season upon receiving FDA authorisation, adding that its shot showed broad cross-neutralising antibodies against multiple variants, including KP.2 and KP.3.

Pfizer and Moderna make messenger RNA vaccines, which can be developed more quickly than Novavax’s protein-based shot.

The JN.1 variant was the dominant strain in the USearlier in 2024. While it is no longer as prevalent, it is estimated to account for 4.4 per cent of cases over the two-week period ended June 22, according to CDC data.

The KP.2 strain was estimated to account for about 20.8 per cent of cases, while KP.3, now becoming dominant, was at 33.1 per cent.

Pfizer said it was holding global discussions with regulators including the FDA, to assess the composition of future Covid-19 vaccine formulations.

Moderna said it would be ready with the updated shot in time for the fall vaccination campaign, while Pfizer and partner BioNTech said they would be ready to supply their updated vaccines immediately upon approval.

Pfizer and Moderna said they were ready to supply vaccines targeting either the JN.1 or KP.2 variants. REUTERS