Pfizer Pushes For Third Shot As Delta Drives Global Outbreaks

The Delta variant is sweeping across the globe as countries race to vaccinate their populations to ward off fresh outbreaks.

Pfizer and BioNTech said they would seek authorization for a third dose of their Covid-19 vaccine to boost its efficacy as the Delta variant drove devastating outbreaks in Asia, including in Thailand where fresh curbs were announced Friday. With the pandemic once again wreaking havoc, Japan banned fans from most Olympic events and placed Tokyo under a virus state of emergency throughout the Games just two weeks before the opening ceremony. The highly-transmissible Delta variant, first detected in India, is sweeping across the globe as countries race to vaccinate their populations to ward off fresh outbreaks. Pfizer and BioNTech said Thursday they expected that a third dose will perform well against the strain, and that they would be seeking authorization in the United States, Europe and other regions in coming weeks.