(Fighting against New Coronary Pneumonia) US experts say that in the future, a new crown vaccine may be required every year
China News Agency, Washington, September 6 (Reporter Sha Hanting) Ashish Jha, coordinator of the White House New Crown Response Task Force, said on the 6th local time that people may need to receive a booster shot of the new crown vaccine every year in the future.
Jha said in a telephone press conference that day that the United States is entering a stage where most Americans can get good protection by getting a booster shot of the new crown vaccine every year.
Additional booster shots may be required for severely ill and immunocompromised individuals.
Jha said this week was an "important turning point" in the fight against Covid-19 and that a vaccine would become "part of our lives".
Regarding the upgraded versions of the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines recently approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Jha said that people who meet the requirements can currently "vaccinate for free", but the new crown vaccine and related treatments may no longer be free in the future.
Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, also said on the same day that starting this fall, people may need to receive a booster shot of the new crown vaccine every year, "like a flu vaccine."
The upgraded vaccine will remain effective even if the virus undergoes "minor mutations" from the current BA.4 and BA.5 strains.
But if a "massive mutation" occurs, such as from a delta strain to an Omicron strain, the vaccine would need to be modified.
Fauci also called on people who meet the requirements to get the upgraded new crown vaccine as soon as possible.
Fauci said getting an upgraded vaccine "will help protect yourself, your family and your community this fall and winter."
On August 31, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved an upgraded version of the new crown vaccine from Moderna and Pfizer against the Omicron strain.
These two upgraded new crown vaccines will be used as single-dose booster shots.
The upgraded version of the Moderna vaccine is suitable for people 18 years of age and older, and the upgraded version of the Pfizer vaccine is suitable for people 12 years of age and older.
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