(HealthDay News) — The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is recommending wide use of the updated mRNA COVID-19 vaccines from Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna.
“CDC is now recommending updated COVID-19 vaccination for everyone 6 months and older to better protect you and your loved ones,” CDC Director Mandy Cohen, MD, said in a statement.
The updated COVID-19 vaccines target the XBB.1.5 omicron subvariant. XBB.1.5 is no longer the dominant SARS-CoV-2 variant circulating in the United States, but health experts say the updated vaccines will offer some protection against currently circulating variants.
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The updated COVID-19 vaccines are each fully approved for people aged 12 years and older, and the vaccines are authorized under emergency use for children 6 months through 11 years of age. The US Food and Drug Administration recommended the following uses:
- People aged 5 years and older, regardless of previous vaccination, can receive a single dose of an updated COVID-19 vaccine at least 2 months since the last dose of any COVID-19 vaccine
- Children aged 6 months through 4 years who have been vaccinated against COVID-19 can receive 1 or 2 doses of an updated COVID-19 vaccine (depending on the previous COVID-19 vaccine received)
- Unvaccinated children 6 months through 4 years of age can receive 3 doses of the updated Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine or 2 doses of the updated Moderna COVID-19 vaccine.
