COVID VACCINE COMIRNATY DE PFIZER, seen in a CVS pharmacy in Eagle Rock, California, on September 14, 2023.
Irfan Khan | Los Angeles Times | Getty images
The food and medication administration approved on Wednesday the last round of Covid vaccines in the USA., But established new limits on whom they can obtain them.
The agency ended its broader authorization of the shots, only that it eliminated them for people with greater risk of serious diseases. That includes those 65 and more of younger adults with at least one underlying condition that puts them at greater risk.
The measure could complicate access to shooting for millions of Americans, and ask questions about whether insurance plans will still cover them for healthy adults.
“Emergency use authorizations for COVID vaccines, once used to justify the broad mandates on the general public during the Biden administration, are now terminated,” said the Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., in a position on X.
“The American people demanded science, security and common sense,” he said. “This framework offers all three.”
Kennedy's efforts follow, an outstanding skeptic of the vaccine, to change immunizations in the US.
A key panel of vaccine advisors for centers for disease control and prevention must vote to recommend COVID shots. But Kennedy at the beginning of this year destroyed that panel and appointed new members, some of which are critical of widely known vaccines.
In the publication, Kennedy said the shots are available for all the patients who choose them after consulting with their doctors. But it is not clear the ease with what ease patients without high -risk factors can obtain a COVID vaccine.
Kennedy said the FDA has authorized Modernis shot by those 6 months onwards, PfizerThe vaccine for people 5 years and older, and NovávaxJab for those over 12 years old, but only for those specifically with greater risk of seriously ill from the virus.
Adults 65 years and older have a higher risk of severe COVID, as are younger adults who are immunocompromised or have underlying medical conditions such as cancer, obesity, diabetes, chronic renal disease and heart disease, according to the CDC website.
The end of the so -called emergency authorizations means that Pfizer's shot is no longer eliminated for children from 6 months to 4 years. It occurs after Pfizer in August said that he has requested that the FDA maintain that authorization in place for the next autumn and winter season.
In a launch, Pfizer confirmed that the FDA had cleared its updated covid shot for use in adults 65 years of age or older and those aged five to 64 with at least one underlying condition that puts them at high risk of serious diseases. The company will begin to send the shot immediately, and will be available in pharmacies, hospitals and clinics throughout the country “in the next few days.”
In a separate launch, Modern also confirmed that their updated COVID shooting is approved for those 65 years of age or older and people from 6 months to 64 years of age who have a higher risk of serious diseases. The company added that its new next -generation COVID vaccine is approved for older adults and high -risk patients from 12 to 64 years. Modern said he hopes that the shots are available in the next few days.
The actions of Pfizer and modern quoted a little higher on Wednesday afternoon, while Novavax's actions submerged.
In May, the CDC eliminated the recommendation that pregnant women and healthy children receive covid shots. But the American Academy of Pediatrics diverged from the agency earlier this month, recommending COVID shots for children between 6 months and 2 years.
In a statement on Wednesday, Dr. Susan Kressly, president of the American Academy of Pediatrics, described the most limited approval of the “deeply worrying” FDA. She said that respiratory diseases such as Covid can be “especially risky for babies and young children, whose respiratory and lungs are small and still develop.”
“Any father who wants to vaccinate his son must have access to this vaccine,” he said. “The unprecedented action today of HHS not only avoids this option for many families, but adds more confusion and stress for parents trying to make the best decisions for their children.”
She said the AAP urges the administration to “allow these elections to remain with medical experts and families.”
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists also advised pregnant women to obtain the Covid vaccine to protect themselves and their babies, that they cannot be immunized until they have 6 months.
