WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. health officials said Wednesday they have agreed to purchase an additional 105 million doses of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine ahead of a fall booster campaign.
The administration of President Joe Biden announced the $3.2 billion deal as federal scientists weigh how to update vaccines to better protect Americans against a rapidly evolving virus. Federal officials said the purchase agreement includes the option to purchase a total of 300 million vaccines, including a combination of doses for both adults and children.
The first doses will be delivered at the beginning of the fall, pending a decision from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to authorize new versions of the vaccines. The FDA is expected to announce a decision in the coming days after a meeting Tuesday in which outside advisers recommended modifying the vaccines to better target the omicron variant.
Current vaccines provide strong protection against hospitalization and death, but their ability to prevent infection decreased markedly with the advent of omicron.
It is unclear who the modified reinforcements might be offered to; perhaps only older adults or those for whom the virus poses a high risk. But once the FDA issues a decision on the change in the formula, Pfizer and its competitor Moderna will have to seek authorization for the duly updated doses, at which time health authorities can determine the strategy to follow in the fall.
Wednesday’s announcement came at a time when Congress remains deadlocked over billions of dollars in funding requested by the Biden administration to buy additional vaccines, tests and drugs to fight the pandemic. Lawmakers in the House and Senate have been in a tug-of-war for weeks over how to break the impasse. Funding for the latest purchase from Pfizer comes from resources reallocated from previous COVID-19 assistance programs, officials said.
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