FDA advisers urge fall COVID vaccine recipe to target JN.1 strain
Government advisers said it’s time to update the COVID-19 vaccine formula that Americans will receive in the fall to target the version known as JN.1.
Scripps News
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced Thursday that everyone 6 months of age or older should get their COVID-19 and flu vaccinations up to date by this fall.
The CDC advisory committee’s unanimous vote indicates that for the foreseeable future, the federal health agency’s public health guidance regarding the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic will be similar to its view of other respiratory illnesses, such as seasonal influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). The CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) also recommended that people aged 6 months and older be routinely vaccinated against seasonal influenza, targeting the three influenza A strains that dominated last winter.
“Our number one recommendation to protect yourself and your loved ones from respiratory illness is to get vaccinated,” CDC Director Dr. Mandy Cohen, who supported the recommendation, said in a statement. “Make plans for you and your family to get both up-to-date flu and COVID vaccines this fall, ahead of respiratory virus season.”
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Four years into the COVID-19 pandemic, uptake of new vaccines is declining. Fewer than a quarter of American adults had received the latest COVID-19 vaccine as of May, according to CDC data. Panelists expressed concern that the CDC’s Bridge Access Program, which provided free COVID-19 vaccines to uninsured and underinsured people, will end in August, before vaccinations of the latest COVID-19 vaccines begin.
While the number of cases is not as high as in 2020 and 2021, the virus continues to mutate to survive, and the U.S. is currently seeing an increase in cases of new subvariants. The agency said people should take both COVID-19 and influenza seriously. According to the CDC, more than 916,300 people were hospitalized with COVID-19 in 2023, and 75,500 died. In contrast, about 45,000 people died from influenza complications in 2023.
The CDC said people who have received the latest COVID-19 vaccines have increased protection against emergency room and hospital visits compared to those who have not been vaccinated. COVID-19 vaccination also reduces the risk of developing long COVID, which can develop later in severe illness.
The updated vaccines offer targeted protection because immunity from previous vaccinations or infections fades over time. The previous vaccines targeted specific variants, so a new vaccine was needed to target the new dominant strains. ACIP last met in February and recommended that adults 65 and older receive a booster dose of the fall 2023 version of the vaccine.
Medical experts believe COVID-19 is here to stay, and getting the updated vaccine before an expected winter surge in the virus can help prevent illness and serious complications from COVID-19.
“The virus is not over yet,” he said. Vaccine Education Center “This virus will join other respiratory illnesses that infect hundreds of thousands of people and kill tens of thousands every year,” said Dr. Ian McGrath, a physician at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and member of a Food and Drug Administration committee that recently advised on which strains of COVID-19 to target with new vaccines.
Offit added that people in high-risk groups should consider getting vaccinated to avoid severe illness and death, including those over 65, those who are immunocompromised and pregnant women.
The CDC updated its COVID-19 isolation guidelines in March to be more consistent with advice for other respiratory illnesses. The rationale is that COVID-19 is transmitted and causes illness in the same way as seasonal influenza and RSV. The CDC on Wednesday also updated its RSV vaccine guidelines for people 60 and older. Anyone 75 and older should get the RSV vaccine, and anyone between 60 and 74 should get it if they have an increased risk of RSV infection due to lung disease, heart disease or other chronic conditions, or if they live in a nursing home, the CDC said.
He said people may be confused about the number of vaccines recommended. American Academy of Family Physicians(ACIP is a non-voting organization.) Part of the initiative going forward is for public health experts to establish a routine vaccination cycle so people can get accustomed to immunity against COVID-19, he said.
“We’re going to get everybody on a regular schedule,” Farr said, “so they know that they’re going to get their flu shot every fall and they’re going to get COVID updates.”
In early June, an FDA advisory committee recommended a vaccine targeting the JN.1 lineage of SARS-CoV-2, which dominated cases this winter, and its variant, FLiRT, named for a genetic mutation, which is now leading cases. updateThe FDA has encouraged vaccine manufacturers to also target the JN.1 subvariant KP.2.
An improved COVID-19 vaccine is expected to be released in August or September.