US Clears Updated Vaccine Targeting New COVID Versions
2022-09-01
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1The United States on Wednesday approved an updated COVID-19 vaccine to target the Omicron version of the virus.
2Injections could be available within days.
3The Food and Drug Administration, or FDA, approved the new shots made by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna.
4Officials credit the two vaccines with saving millions of lives.
5And the agency says it hopes that the new shot will prevent another increase in infections this winter.
6"You'll see me at the front of the line," FDA vaccine chief Dr. Peter Marks told The Associated Press shortly before his agency approved the new vaccines.
7Until now, COVID-19 vaccines had targeted the earliest version of the coronavirus.
8Since then, several versions, or variants, have appeared.
9The new shots are called "bivalent."
10They are designed to protect against both the earliest and newer versions of Omicron called BA.4 and BA.5.
11These two are considered the most contagious.
12"It really provides the broadest opportunity for protection," Pfizer vaccine chief Annaliesa Anderson told the AP.
13The updated shots, called boosters, are for people who have already received the earlier vaccine.
14The FDA said the shots are not to be used as a first vaccination.
15And they should be given at least two months after people receive the last shot of the earlier vaccine version.
16The updated shots from Pfizer-BioNTech may be given to anyone 12 years old and older.
17The ones from Moderna are for adults.
18The U.S. has purchased more than 170 million treatments from the two companies.
19Pfizer said it could ship up to 15 million of the vaccines by the end of next week.
20Before the vaccination campaign begins, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will meet Thursday.
21Agency leaders are to decide whether people at high risk from COVID-19 should receive the updated shots first.
22U.S. health officials have urged Americans to receive a three-shot vaccination against COVID-19.
23So far, only half of vaccinated Americans have gotten the third shot.
24And only a third of those 50 and older have received an extra fourth shot.
25The earliest vaccines still offer strong protection against severe disease and death from COVID-19 for generally healthy people.
26It is unclear whether some Americans will take the updated shots at all.
27E. John Wherry is an immunologist at the University of Pennsylvania.
28He said health officials should explain to the public that getting the updated COVID-19 shot is just like getting the yearly flu shot.
29Wherry said, "Give a clear, forward-looking set of expectations."
30The FDA's approval of the updated vaccines is the first step toward dealing with COVID-19 vaccine updates like yearly flu shots.
31The agency ordered vaccine makers to make changes and to target the latest Omicron versions.
32The FDA did not wait for additional tests on humans.
33Marks said animal tests showed the latest update brought "a very good immune response."
34Even as the updated shots are being produced, Moderna and Pfizer are still conducting studies.
35They are studying the vaccine's effectiveness and whether it protects against new versions.
36Pfizer plans to ask the FDA to permit updated shots for five- to 11-year-olds in early October.
37The U.S. is not the only country with plans to update COVID-19 vaccines.
38Britain recently decided to offer adults over 50 a different booster from Moderna.
39It is 'bivalent" and targets the earlier BA.1 version of Omicron.
40European health officials are considering whether to approve one or both updated vaccines.
41I'm Mario Ritter, Jr.
1The United States on Wednesday approved an updated COVID-19 vaccine to target the Omicron version of the virus. 2Injections could be available within days. 3The Food and Drug Administration, or FDA, approved the new shots made by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna. Officials credit the two vaccines with saving millions of lives. And the agency says it hopes that the new shot will prevent another increase in infections this winter. 4"You'll see me at the front of the line," FDA vaccine chief Dr. Peter Marks told The Associated Press shortly before his agency approved the new vaccines. 5Until now, COVID-19 vaccines had targeted the earliest version of the coronavirus. Since then, several versions, or variants, have appeared. The new shots are called "bivalent." They are designed to protect against both the earliest and newer versions of Omicron called BA.4 and BA.5. These two are considered the most contagious. 6"It really provides the broadest opportunity for protection," Pfizer vaccine chief Annaliesa Anderson told the AP. 7The updated shots, called boosters, are for people who have already received the earlier vaccine. The FDA said the shots are not to be used as a first vaccination. And they should be given at least two months after people receive the last shot of the earlier vaccine version. The updated shots from Pfizer-BioNTech may be given to anyone 12 years old and older. The ones from Moderna are for adults. 8The U.S. has purchased more than 170 million treatments from the two companies. Pfizer said it could ship up to 15 million of the vaccines by the end of next week. 9Before the vaccination campaign begins, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will meet Thursday. Agency leaders are to decide whether people at high risk from COVID-19 should receive the updated shots first. 10U.S. health officials have urged Americans to receive a three-shot vaccination against COVID-19. So far, only half of vaccinated Americans have gotten the third shot. And only a third of those 50 and older have received an extra fourth shot. 11The earliest vaccines still offer strong protection against severe disease and death from COVID-19 for generally healthy people. It is unclear whether some Americans will take the updated shots at all. 12E. John Wherry is an immunologist at the University of Pennsylvania. He said health officials should explain to the public that getting the updated COVID-19 shot is just like getting the yearly flu shot. Wherry said, "Give a clear, forward-looking set of expectations." 13The FDA's approval of the updated vaccines is the first step toward dealing with COVID-19 vaccine updates like yearly flu shots. The agency ordered vaccine makers to make changes and to target the latest Omicron versions. The FDA did not wait for additional tests on humans. Marks said animal tests showed the latest update brought "a very good immune response." 14Even as the updated shots are being produced, Moderna and Pfizer are still conducting studies. They are studying the vaccine's effectiveness and whether it protects against new versions. Pfizer plans to ask the FDA to permit updated shots for five- to 11-year-olds in early October. 15The U.S. is not the only country with plans to update COVID-19 vaccines. Britain recently decided to offer adults over 50 a different booster from Moderna. It is 'bivalent" and targets the earlier BA.1 version of Omicron. European health officials are considering whether to approve one or both updated vaccines. 16I'm Mario Ritter, Jr. 17Lauren Neergaard reported this story for the Associated Press. Hai Do adapted it for VOA Learning English. 18___________________________________________________________________ 19Words in This Story 20contagious -adj. able to spread easily from one person or one animal to another 21opportunity -n. a situation or set of conditions in which something ban be done 22____________________________________________________________________ 23What do you think of the new COVID-19 vaccine? 24We want to hear from you. 25We have a new comment system. Here is how it works: 26Each time you return to comment on the Learning English site, you can use your account and see your comments and replies to them. Our comment policy is here.