FDA Targets COVID Vaccine Strain

Food and Drug Administration (FDA) officials last week told COVID-19 vaccine makers to target the XBB.1.5 strain of omicron when they develop shots for next fall. But deciding on the strain was the easy part — public health officials will now be tasked with a new messaging campaign to encourage vaccinations among a checked-out public, after poor uptake of the most recent booster. Just 17 percent of Americans have received a bivalent booster dose since they were rolled out last year. Data presented to an FDA advisory panel on Thursday showed that protection against hospitalization drops considerably four to six months after a bivalent booster. Read more from The Hill here.