Washington, Apr 18 (EFE).- The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) indicated on Tuesday that a single dose of bivalent vaccine for two strains of the omicron variant of the coronavirus is sufficient for most people.
“At this point in the pandemic, available information supports a simplification in the use of licensed bivalent vaccines, and the agency believes this will help encourage vaccination,” said Peter Marks, director of the FDA’s Center for Biological Evaluation.
“Available evidence indicates that the majority of the United States population over the age of five has antibodies to SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes covid-19,” the official added.
That defense comes “either from vaccination or infection and can serve as the foundation for the protection provided by bivalent vaccines,” he said.
In another step to simplify the vaccination schedule for covid-19, the FDA announced that all vaccines administered to people over six months of age will be of the bivalent dose, specific for the BA.4 and BA.5 omicron strains.
The agency noted that the original versions of the covid-19 vaccines produced by pharmaceutical firms Pfizer and Moderna are no longer licensed for use in the United States.
Inoculation on a two-dose schedule has been the standard in the United States since those vaccines hit the market in late 2020.
The coronavirus vaccine produced by the Johnson and Johnson firm was initially the only one authorized in the United States and was administered in a single dose.
The FDA announcement added that people who have not yet received a bivalent shot or have not been vaccinated in any way can get it in a single dose, but those who have already received a single dose “are not currently eligible for another dose.” ”.
People age 65 and older who have received a single dose of the bivalent vaccine can receive an additional dose at least four months after receiving the initial bivalent dose, the statement added.
