Scientists say administering COVID-19 boosters to Americans every few months is neither realistic nor a feasible way to handle variants, The New York Times reported Jan. 6.
As the U.S. determines the best course of action to quell the spread of coronavirus variants, some Americans are wondering if the country will roll out fourth shots, as Israel did. Vaccine experts told the Times this would likely be a losing battle, as so far just over one-third of Americans who received their initial vaccination series have gotten a booster.
Additionally, scientists are not convinced more boosters would lead to fewer infections, as variants have evolved to evade the shots designed to target early versions of the coronavirus.
"It doesn’t make sense to keep boosting against a strain that's already gone," Ali Ellebedy, PhD, an immunologist at Washington University in St. Louis, told the Times. "If you are going to add one more dose after three, I would definitely wait for an omicron-based one."
Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson have said they are developing vaccines to target omicron. Some researchers are also working on vaccines that target parts of the virus that change gradually or not at all, according to the report.