BELOW SUPERNAV drop zone ⇩

New COVID-19 vaccine booster, treatment applications submitted to FDA

MAIN AREA TOP drop zone ⇩

MAIN AREA TOP drop zone ⇩

ovp test

mLife Diagnostics LLC: Oral Fluid Drug Testing

Male shot by female at Shreveport apartment

Class to create biodiverse backyard

Rules for outbursts at Caddo School Board Meeting

AUTO TEST CUSTOM HTML 20241114185800

AUTO TEST CUSTOM HTML 20241115200405

AUTO TEST CUSTOM HTML 20241118165728

AUTO TEST CUSTOM HTML 20241118184948

(NewsNation Now) — Two drug companies are seeking approval to bring new weapons into the fight against COVID-19.

Johnson & Johnson applied for authorization to distribute booster doses, and says the effectiveness of its shots can reach more than 90%.

A Phase 3 study that found, “A booster of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine given 56 days after the primary dose provided 94 percent protection against symptomatic (moderate to severe/critical) COVID-19.”

Nobody in the study who got a booster dose had severe COVID-19.

J&J said it filed a request with the FDA to authorize boosters for people 18 and older who previously received the company’s one-shot vaccine. While the company said it submitted data on several different booster intervals, ranging from two to six months, it did not formally recommend one to regulators.

AstraZeneca also applied for FDA emergency use authorization for a treatment similar to other antibody cocktails that have come to market.

If authorized, the drug would likely be limited to people with compromised immune systems who don’t get sufficient protection from vaccination.

Late-stage human trials showed that AstraZeneca’s antibody drug reduced the risk of developing symptomatic COVID-19 by 77%. More than three-quarters of the participants had suppressed immune systems due to cancer, lupus and other conditions that made them more susceptible to severe disease.

“First and foremost we want to protect those vulnerable populations that haven’t been adequately protected by the vaccine,” said Menelas Pangalos, AstraZeneca’s head of research and development. “But ultimately it will be up to health authorities to work out who they choose to immunize.”

Scientists say in the face of a vocal anti-vaccine movement across the country, it’s important to clarify what these COVID-19 treatments are and what they are not.

“Any time you get this illness, you are rolling the dice with what can happen with complications and the progress of the disease,” Dr. Dana Hawkinson, an infectious disease physician with the University of Kansas Health System, told NewsNation. “So, it is not something to be put in place of vaccination.

“Vaccination continues to be our most important weapon against this disease.”

A new report from the Department of Health and Human Services shows COVID-19 vaccinations may have prevented more than 265,000 cases and nearly 39,000 deaths among senior citizens in the U.S.

J&J rival drugmakers Pfizer and Moderna have provided the vast majority of U.S. COVID-19 vaccines. More than 170 million Americans have been fully vaccinated with the companies’ two-dose shots while less than 15 million Americans got the J&J shot.

Coronavirus

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed

Site Settings Survey

 

MAIN AREA MIDDLE drop zone ⇩

Trending on NewsNation

AUTO TEST CUSTOM HTML 20241119133138

MAIN AREA BOTTOM drop zone ⇩

tt

KC Chiefs parade shooting: 1 dead, 21 shot including 9 kids | Morning in America

Witness of Chiefs parade shooting describes suspect | Banfield

Kansas City Chiefs parade shooting: Mom of 2 dead, over 20 shot | Banfield

WWE star Ashley Massaro 'threatened' by board to keep quiet about alleged rape: Friend | Banfield

Friend of WWE star: Ashley Massaro 'spent hours' sobbing after alleged rape | Banfield

Mostly Cloudy

la

52°F Mostly Cloudy Feels like 52°
Wind
0 mph NE
Humidity
83%
Sunrise
Sunset

Tonight

Cloudy. Low near 50F. Winds light and variable.
50°F Cloudy. Low near 50F. Winds light and variable.
Wind
3 mph ENE
Precip
3%
Sunset
Moon Phase
Last Quarter