Moderna announces single-dose booster shot for protection against COVID-19, flu

Moderna announced Thursday a series of new projects, including the development of a booster shot that would provide additional protection against COVID-19 and the flu in a single dose.

Posted 1:03 p.m. Sep 9, 2021 — Updated 3:07 p.m. Sep 9, 2021

Moderna announced Thursday a series of new projects, including the development of a booster shot that would provide additional protection against COVID-19 and the flu in a single dose.

A timelime for the development, research and release of the booster was not announced.

CEO Stéphane Bancel announced the news on Twitter, calling it the first step in Moderna's novel respiratory vaccine program.

A plan is underway to offer booster shots to fully vaccinated Moderna and Pfizer recipients by Sept. 20, although the Food and Drug Administration said Moderna's boosters likely won't be ready by that time. Researchers have started clinical trials studying the effectiveness of a booster for those who received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

The World Health Organization on Wednesday called on rich countries with large supplies of coronavirus vaccines to refrain from offering booster shots through the end of the year and make the doses available for poorer countries.

To date, booster shots are only recommended for people with autoimmune disorders and those at greater risk for becoming severely ill from COVID-19. If the booster is recommended for all vaccinated individuals, people should get the third dose, which is identical to the first two doses, eight months after receiving their second dose.

FDA scientific advisers will publicly debate Pfizer's evidence of the protection of a booster on Sept. 17. If the FDA approves another dose, then advisers to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will recommend who should get one. The process to approve Moderna's booster vaccine may take longer, especially since Moderna has stated it wants its booster to be half the dose of the original shots.

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