U.S. FDA expands BoosterShot target to youth 16 years of age and older

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US has expanded the target of booster vaccination from adults 18 years of age or older to adolescents 16 years of age or older. U.S. health officials say the age range for booster vaccination may be lowered in the future.

Correspondent Kim Jong-won from New York.

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U.S. Food and Drug Administration and FDA have urgently approved the booster shot for the third booster vaccination for adolescents aged 16 to 17 years.

Until now, only adults over the age of 18 could receive the booster shot, but this has been expanded so that adolescents can also be vaccinated.

Immediately after the FDA's decision, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the CDC immediately approved additional vaccines much more quickly than usual, and the youth booster vaccination began immediately.

[Rochelle Wallensky / Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): Currently, we are facing a mutation that requires stronger immunity. In this context, 16-17 year-olds have also been approved to be vaccinated with Booster Shot.] In the

United States, the recent rapid increase in the number of confirmed coronavirus cases has brought an emergency,

[Michael Osterhelm / Director of the Center for Infectious Diseases Research, University of Minnesota: Confirmed in several states in the United States. self increased by more than 20%. This increase will spread to more states in a few weeks.] The

United States, which even President Biden is waging an all-out campaign for the booster shot, plans to expand the target audience by lowering the age range for booster vaccination.

[Rochelle Wallensky / Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): We will also review and expedite approval of the booster dose for children 12 to 15 years of age with the FDA.]

Meanwhile, the European Medicines Agency is currently testing the second dose of vaccine 6 Although it is recommended to receive a booster vaccination after one month, he expressed the view that it is more effective to receive a booster shot three months earlier than this.