Every Individuals of 16 and 17 years old should have a booster shot of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine at least six months after finishing their first two doses, according to the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). According to the sources, CDC advice came just hours after the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the Pfizer-BioNTech third shot for this age range.
“Although we don’t have all the answers on the Omicron mutation,” CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said in a statement, “recent data suggests that Covid-19 boosters help widen and strengthen the protection against Omicron and other variants.”
“We know that Covid-19 immunizations are safe and effective,” Walensky said. “I strongly advise adolescents aged 16 and 17 to have their booster if they have been vaccinated by Pfizer by at least 6 months.”
After successfully completing vaccination with any FDA-authorized or approved Covid-19 vaccine, the FDA approved the use of a single booster dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine for all individuals 18 years of age and older on November 19. The age bracket eligible for the booster dose has been increased as a result of the new move on Thursday.
For teenagers aged 16 and 17, only the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccination is now approved and recommended. The FDA released a statement saying that the benefits of a single booster dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine outweigh the risks of myocarditis and pericarditis in people aged 16 and 17, allowing them to continue to be protected against Covid-19 and its serious consequences, which include hospitalization and death.
Vaccination remains the best protection against Covid-19, according to Woodcock, as both the Delta and Omicron strains continue to spread.
The CDC’s recommendation and the FDA’s emergency approval came just one day after Pfizer and BioNTech announced preliminary test results showing that booster doses provide high levels of protection against the highly mutated Omicron form.
