United States: The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has recommended that individuals aged six months and older should receive an updated COVID-19 vaccine for the 2024-25 immunisation campaign, regardless of their previous vaccination status.
The new recommendation aligns with the unanimous vote of the CDC’s panel of outside experts. They had advised the use of updated COVID-19 vaccines, authorized or approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), for those aged six months and older.
The immunisation will take effect once the new vaccines from Moderna, Novavax, and Pfizer become available later this year, according to the CDC
Earlier this month, the FDA asked vaccine manufacturers to update new shots to target the KP.2 variant if feasible, instead of the previously targeted JN.1 lineage. Both Moderna and Novavax have submitted applications to the FDA for updating their vaccines, originally targeting the JN.1 strain.
Novavax announced its intention to make its updated vaccine available at the start of the vaccination season upon receiving FDA authorisation. The company stated that its shot showed broad cross-neutralising antibodies against multiple variants, including KP.2 and KP.3.
Pfizer and Moderna, which produce messenger RNA vaccines that can be developed more quickly than Novavax’s protein-based shot, are ready to supply vaccines targeting either the JN.1 or KP.2 variants.
Moderna confirmed it would be ready with the updated shot in time for the fall vaccination campaign, while Pfizer and its partner BioNTech indicated they would be prepared to supply their updated vaccines immediately upon approval.
The JN.1 variant, dominant in the U.S. earlier this year, now accounts for an estimated 4.4 percent of cases in two weeks according to CDC data. The KP.2 strain is estimated to account for 20.8 percent of cases, while the now-dominant KP.3 strain accounts for 33.1 percent.
Pfizer stated it is engaged in global discussions with regulators, including the FDA, to assess the composition of future COVID-19 vaccine formulations.
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