Moderna, J&J booster shots: US experts to meet soon

Independent advisers to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will meet later this month to make recommendations on booster doses of Moderna Inc and Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccines, the agency said in a Reuters report.

The meetings, on Oct. 20-21, are scheduled a week after advisers to the US Food and Drug Administration weigh in on the need for booster doses of the two vaccines.

The CDC panel, called Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, will also discuss COVID-19 vaccines for children on Nov. 2 and 3, an agency spokesperson said.

The pediatric meetings are also scheduled a week after FDA advisers review the need for Pfizer Inc’s COVID-19 vaccine in children aged five to 11.

Pfizer on Thursday said the company and its partner BioNTech SE have asked US regulators to authorize emergency use of their COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 5 to 11.