The Food and Drug Administration on Monday greenlighted updated Covid boosters from Pfizer and Moderna. The shots, which are formulated to target the XBB.1.5 subvariant, are expected to be available later this week, after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention signs off.
Anyone age 5 and older can get an updated booster shot from either Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna, regardless of whether they were previously vaccinated, the FDA said in a statement. People who have been vaccinated should wait at least two months before getting the updated booster.
The boosters come as Covid cases are rising in the U.S., driven by a slew of subvariants. Officials hope that the boosters can blunt a possible spike in winter illness.
For the first time since the vaccines became available, the federal government will not cover the cost of the shots.
Pfizer and Moderna have said they are pricing each vaccine dose at over $100.
Jennifer Kates, director of the Global Health & HIV Policy Program at the nonprofit KFF, said most people with private and public health insurance should continue to pay nothing out of pocket for the boosters — as long as they stick with an in-network provider.
People who don’t have insurance — an estimated 30 million in the U.S. — should be able to get a booster for free at community health centers. Additionally, the Biden administration is also rolling out a “bridge” program that will offer uninsured people access to free boosters at least through the end of 2024. Those who don’t know or don’t have access to these resources may have to pay out of pocket, she said.
Sorry, USA-centrism again. [Are Germans getting charged $100 for their covid vaccines this year? Because I was responding to the OP comment of “they’re gonna sell it back to us at $100 a pop”.]. Anyway, to clarify: Pfizer did not accept any US government money for their covid vaccine research.
To save time for the next step of this disagreement, you’re going to say that Pfizer did accept US government money during the covid vaccine research period, and I’m going to point out that was part of a pre-purchase agreement where the US would buy up to 100 million doses of the vaccine was approved. sigh Are we done here?
Yeah, we’re done here where someone thinks lifesaving medicine is worth holding above people’s heads like a threat.
Sir Frederick Banting rolling in his fucking grave.
I mean, we should have a national healthcare system. But we don’t. So the shit needs to be paid for. That’s how this works.