Input Stories

Input Stories

CDC OKs Fourth Vaccine Dose for Immunocompromised

By NAM News Room

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has ruled that a small portion of Americans will become eligible for a fourth COVID-19 vaccine dose this week, according to Business Insider.

New CDC guidance: The small number of adults in the United States who have moderately or severely weakened immune systems and received the Moderna or Pfizer vaccines can now receive a fourth dose six months after their third. At the moment, those who received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine can only receive two shots, but not an additional third or fourth.

The details: The CDC says that that patients who were originally vaccinated with Pfizer or Moderna vaccines can receive any of the FDA-approved vaccines—Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson—for their fourth doses, though the Moderna vaccine should be half-strength. 

The scope: “Roughly 3% of the U.S. population is moderately or severely immunosuppressed and at risk of severe COVID-19, according to the CDC. These people often produce worse immune responses to vaccines than those who aren’t immunocompromised, the CDC has previously said. People who take steroids or drugs for transplants, and those with certain health conditions, such as cancer and untreated HIV, would fit this criteria, according to the CDC.”

The reminder: “The guidance doesn’t apply to Americans at high risk of COVID-19 who have normal immune systems—these people are eligible for a third shot, a booster, at six months after they’re fully vaccinated.”

The info: Make sure to check out the NAM’s resource page, This Is Our Shot, for additional information on how vaccines protect our communities and our workforces. 

View More