Report: Spring COVID booster to be authorized for high-risk people in US
Enlarge / Miguel Torres flexes after Los Angeles County Department of Public Health nurse Yessica Carrillo gave him a COVID-19 booster during the Los Angeles Comic Con. (credit: Getty | Hans Gutknecht)
The US government will soon authorize another round of COVID-19 vaccine booster doses to certain high-risk populations, namely people 65 and older and those with compromised immune systems, according to a Washington Post report that cited anonymous officials familiar with the plan.
The spring booster plan for high-risk individuals in the US would resemble booster offerings already in place in Canada and the United Kingdom, and it would put the country largely in agreement with updated recommendations released last week by the World Health Organization. The agency's advisory group on immunizations determined that, as of now, healthy adults and children do not need additional boosters in the near term, but certain high-risk groups should be offered boosters every six to 12 months.
The US's spring boosters will be offered to high-risk people who have gone at least four months since their last shot and want additional protection, the Post reported. The US last authorized a booster dose in September, meaning that some in the high-risk group may be around seven months past their last dose.