A recent New York Times article discussed the latest news on COVID-19 booster shots. Although it isn’t yet official, the FDA is expected to greenlight mixing and matching vaccine jabs for boosters. In other words, if you received Johnson & Johnson shots for your first two jabs, you could receive the coveted Pfizer shot to act as a booster.
“It will be confusing to the public if we now start to consider authorizations for mixed or heterologous vaccines,” Ofer Levi, M.D., of Boston Children’s Hospital, told the panel. “On the other hand, we have to follow the science. We’re still in the pandemic here and if there’s opportunity to offer benefit, that’s our job.”
Data from an NIH study on booster shots convinced the FDA to make the authorization. The announcement will provide more flexibility for medical providers and people seeking boosters. However it could also deter people from getting the Johnson & Johnson vaccine since the NIH data showed that mRNA shots initiate a better immune response when used as a follow-up dose.
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