World No. 1 Or US No. 3? Global Access May Factor Into US Booster Shot Decision

A third shot of COVID-19 vaccine may be recommended for Americans soon, but the CDC says the best defense against the pandemic in the US includes ensuring the entire world gets the primary series.

Third vaccine booster dose
Boosters are on the 24 August meeting agenda for the CDC's vaccine advisors. • Source: Alamy

Boosters may be inevitable for the US coronavirus vaccination effort, but federal officials will have to weigh global issues, as well as their own data, in deciding when to recommend a third shot.

The push for requiring a booster shot for those who received the two-shot mRNA vaccine from Pfizer Inc./BioNTech SE or Moderna, Inc. is gaining strength after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommended some immunocompromised individuals receive a third shot

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