Eu Officials Say It S Too Early To Consider 4Th Covid Dose

LONDON (AP) – European health officials say it is too early to consider giving a fourth dose of messenger RNA vaccine to most people, but say an extra booster may be given to people over 80. In a joint statement Wednesday, the European Medicines Agency and the European Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said they had reviewed data on a fourth dose of COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna Inc. They included real-world data from Israel, where research showed that a second amplifier provided only marginally higher protection. “There is currently no clear evidence in the EU that protection against vaccines against serious diseases is significantly reduced in adults with a normal immune system between the ages of 60 and 79,” the agency said. However, the agencies acknowledged that if the pandemic situation changes, a second booster dose may need to be considered in this age group. For adults under 60 without underlying health problems, “there is currently no convincing evidence that the vaccine’s protection against a serious illness is declining or that there is added value to a fourth dose,” the EMA and the ECDC said. The advice runs counter to guidelines issued by the US Food and Drug Administration, which decided last week that Americans aged 50 and over could receive a second COVID-19 booster if at least four months had passed since the last. their vaccination. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention they later recommended the extra shot as an option, but stopped urging those who met the conditions to rush out and get it right away. This decision extends the additional aid to millions more Americans. The European recommendations come as many countries across the continent have given up almost all of their restrictions on COVID-19 and are battling a wave of disease fueled by the highly contagious Omicron BA.2 variant. The milder variant disease has not led to hospitalization and deaths as in previous waves, and authorities in many countries hope that their high vaccination rates will prevent any major disruption to society.

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title: “Eu Officials Say It S Too Early To Consider 4Th Covid Dose " ShowToc: true date: “2022-11-11” author: “Juanita Beaty”

LONDON (AP) – European health officials say it is too early to consider giving a fourth dose of messenger RNA vaccine to most people, but say an extra booster may be given to people over 80. In a joint statement Wednesday, the European Medicines Agency and the European Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said they had reviewed data on a fourth dose of COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna Inc. They included real-world data from Israel, where research showed that a second amplifier provided only marginally higher protection. “There is currently no clear evidence in the EU that protection against vaccines against serious diseases is significantly reduced in adults with a normal immune system between the ages of 60 and 79,” the agency said. However, the agencies acknowledged that if the pandemic situation changes, a second booster dose may need to be considered in this age group. For adults under 60 without underlying health problems, “there is currently no convincing evidence that the vaccine’s protection against a serious illness is declining or that there is added value to a fourth dose,” the EMA and the ECDC said. The advice runs counter to guidelines issued by the US Food and Drug Administration, which decided last week that Americans aged 50 and over could receive a second COVID-19 booster if at least four months had passed since the last. their vaccination. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention they later recommended the extra shot as an option, but stopped urging those who met the conditions to rush out and get it right away. This decision extends the additional aid to millions more Americans. The European recommendations come as many countries across the continent have given up almost all of their restrictions on COVID-19 and are battling a wave of disease fueled by the highly contagious Omicron BA.2 variant. The milder variant disease has not led to hospitalization and deaths as in previous waves, and authorities in many countries hope that their high vaccination rates will prevent any major disruption to society.

Follow the AP’s coverage of the pandemic at The Associated Press