Vaccinated will ‘probably’ need a third Pfizer-Jab within 12 months, then annual shots

Pfizer’s CEO said it is “likely” that those vaccinated with the company’s COVID-19 inoculation will need a third injection sometime within 12 months of getting the first two doses, and possibly a new one every year thereafter. injection.

Albert Bourla, the head of the pharmaceutical giant, made the comments earlier this month in an interview with CNBC made public on Thursday. To date, more than 102 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine have been distributed in the US and more than 38 million people have been fully vaccinated.

“One likely scenario is that there will likely be a third dose, somewhere between six and 12 months, and then there will be an annual revaccination, but all of that needs to be confirmed,” Bourla said at the event. He added, “There are vaccines like polio where one dose is enough, and there are vaccines like flu that you need every year.”

Bourla added that COVID-19 is more like the flu than a virus like polio.

Reuters reported on Thursday that the White House is preparing that Americans may need booster shots nine to 12 months after the first vaccination, while scientists continue to investigate how long the vaccinations will protect against the coronavirus. Initial data has shown that those who receive the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna shots will have protection for at least six months, but the shortened timeline of vaccine development means researchers still don’t have definitive answers when it comes to protection on the long term.

Moderna said this week it was also working on booster shots, which would be ready by fall.

“We think we’re all going to need a boost,” Stéphane Bancel, Moderna’s CEO, told CNBC.

However, a major concern is the spread of COVID-19 variants in the US and beyond. Those strains are now the most common source of infection in the US.

Pfizer said in February it would start testing a booster shot to see if it expands protection, as well as update the original vaccine to better prevent infection from the coronavirus mutations.

“We are taking several steps to act decisively and be ready in case a strain becomes resistant to the protection provided by the vaccine,” Bourla said at the time.