US FDA set to clear third COVID shot for immunocompromised people

Transplant patients and others with weak immune systems often don’t get adequate responses to their first vaccine course and are at the top of the list for getting potential COVID-19 boosters, health officials say.

U.S. drug regulators are set to clear a third dose of Covid vaccines for people with weak immune systems as a new study showed the benefits of an extra shot in transplant patients. A third dose of Moderna Inc.’s vaccine significantly raised antibody levels against the coronavirus in transplant patients, according to a comparison of an extra shot to a placebo in people with weak immune systems. The Food and Drug Administration is set to amend clearances as soon as Thursday for vaccines from both Moderna and Pfizer Inc. to allow extra doses for people with compromised immune systems, according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity. Transplant patients and others with weak immune systems often don’t get adequate responses to their first vaccine course and are at the top of the list for getting potential Covid-19 boosters. An advisory committee to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is set to discuss booster shots for immune compromised people this Friday.