Hope you have enough storage in your phone for one more vaccine selfie: The White House is expected to announce this week that most Americans will need a Covid booster shot eight months after their second doses, according to reports. After the FDA authorized Pfizer’s and Moderna’s boosters for some last week, the third dose could be available for your arm as early as mid-September, per the NYT. 

Why booster shots? Growing case numbers in highly vaccinated countries show that vaccine effectiveness may wear off over time, particularly against the Delta variant.

  • Israel reported that the Pfizer vaccine’s effectiveness against severe disease has fallen to as low as 55% for elderly people who received their second shots in January or February. 
  • Nearly 1 million Israelis have already received booster shots.

NIH Director Dr. Francis Collins said the data from Israel prompted US health officials to rethink their position on booster shots.  

Zoom out: Wealthy countries appear to be full steam ahead with their booster programs, despite the WHO calling on them to share vaccines with lower-income nations first.

– SQ

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