The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will allow a mix-and-match approach on COVID booster shots, giving permission to Americans to receive a different brand of a booster, instead of the extra dose made by the company they were originally inoculated with.

The news was confirmed by The New York Times on Monday, citing sources familiar with the agency's move.

Although the agency will allow Americans to get a different brand of booster shots, sources familiar with FDA's plans pointed out that the agency will not recommend one brand jab over the other when they announced the new approach, and mention that getting the same brand of the booster is preferable.

It can be recalled that both FDA and CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) previously warned Americans not to mix and match vaccine shots from any of the three manufacturers namely: Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson and Johnson.

The FDA has not yet issued an official statement about the move.

Study on 'Mix and Match' Booster Vaccine Approach

The news about FDA's plan to allow the "mix and match" approach when it comes to booster vaccine shots came after a study from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) revealed that people who got Johnson and Johnson vaccine had higher antibody levels when they get a Pfizer or Moderna booster shot.

The said data was presented by the agency's researchers to an FDA advisory panel on Friday.

The study showed that when the individuals who got the J&J vaccine received a Moderna booster, their antibody levels spiked 76-fold over two weeks. Meanwhile, when they received a booster shot from Pfizer, their antibody levels increased to 45-fold.

Pfizer vaccine takers also showed increased antibody levels to 32-fold when they received a booster shot from Moderna.

"What the study shows is that regardless of what individuals received originally, getting boosted with one of the three vaccines... led to good antibody responses in each group," lead study author Dr. Robert Atmar said.

Despite presenting promising results, researchers of the study warned that their data was based on a small group of people about 450, a much smaller population than the 30,000 people enrolled in the original COVID-19 trials.

Moderna, Johnson and Johnson Booster Shots Received Recommendation

The "mix and match" approach on booster shots came as the extra doses for both Moderna and Johnson and Johnson were recommended by an advisory panel from the FDA.

An independent advisory panel for the agency recommended the Moderna booster on Thursday for those 65 years and older adults who are at high risk of COVID due to severe illness or exposure due to work setting. This is in line with the guidance given to the Pfizer vaccine.

Despite recommending Moderna's extra dose, the advisory panel did not mention the interval vaccine takers must wait before getting the brand's booster shot.

Meanwhile, the same committee also recommended the J&J booster shots on Thursday to Americans 18 years and older, at least two months after the initial dose.

Approval of booster shots from the said brands is anticipated from the U.S. FDA.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written By: Joshua Summers

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