COVID vaccines do not need to be changed for Omicron "at this time," says Fauci

COVID-19 vaccines do not currently need to be changed to target the Omicron variant, the president's chief medical adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci said Wednesday at a White House press briefing. 

"Our booster vaccine regimens work against Omicron. At this point, there is no need for a variant-specific booster," Fauci said. 

He cited early results from a number of studies, including a forthcoming pre-print from the National Institutes of Health's Vaccine Research Center, showing that the Omicron variant "undoubtedly compromises" the antibodies offered by the first two shots of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines against infection but that a third dose can substantially restore protection.