COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations continue to spike in California and across most of the U.S. due to a surge in the latest omicron subvariant.
In response, the Biden administration is pushing to open up the second booster to anyone who wants it or needs it. That second booster currently is available only to people 50 and older and those 12 and over who are immunocompromised.
COVID hospitalizations have doubled since May nationwide. The White House COVID response coordinator, Dr. Ashish Jha, says even though the BA.5 subvariant evades immunity, vaccines and boosters are still the best safeguard against severe disease.
UCSF infectious disease expert Dr. Peter Chin-Hong says ultimately, people may need boosters every year when the pandemic fully enters the endemic stage.
"That means where the disease is predictable at one time of the year," Chin-Hong said. "And then we can use the flu model, where you look to see what’s happening in other parts of the world, and you craft the booster shot to match what’s going around."
Expanding eligibility for the second booster shot would require approval from the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Officials from those agencies are expected to meet in the coming days.
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