FDA Officials Push Back After Adviser Says Young, Healthy People Don’t Need New COVID-19 Boosters

Top U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) officials are countering an adviser’s position that young, healthy people do not need the updated COVID-19 vaccine boosters.
Drs. Robert Califf and Peter Marks pointed to a study that analyzed the immune response from 12 people after receiving one of the updated boosters, compared with 23 people who received one or more old boosters. The paper found a small increase in neutralizing antibodies, which are believed to protect against COVID-19.
They also referenced three studies published in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, a quasi-journal from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The three papers, published in December 2022 and relying on observational data, found the new boosters bolster effectiveness against symptomatic infection and/or hospitalization. They did not reference newer CDC data that indicates the protection quickly wanes….}