People who received the two-dose COVID-19 vaccine from Pfizer may need a third shot within the next 12 months, according to CNBC.
When you may need a third vaccine shot
Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said people who received the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine may need a third booster shot within 12 months of being fully vaccinated, according to CNBC.
- Bourla said it’s possible we may need to get vaccinated every year from the novel coronavirus.
- “It is extremely important to suppress the pool of people that can be susceptible to the virus,” he said.
- Bourla added that the vaccines will be necessary to fight off COVID-19 variants.
What about Moderna?
Moderna said it will most likely give out a booster shot by the fall of 2021, as I wrote about for the Deseret News.
- Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel told CNBC: “I want to make sure there are boost vaccines available in the fall so that we protect people as we go into the next fall and winter season in the U.S.”
How long does immunity for COVID-19 last?
Currently, the research shows that the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine creates immunity for at least six months, which I wrote about for the Deseret News. The Pfizer vaccine has been known to use the same technology as the Moderna vaccine. That’s why Pfizer data show that the vaccine does last for at least six months.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the White House medical adviser on the coronavirus, recently told MSNBC’s Mehdi Hasan that the third shot might be necessary because immunity may not last forever.
- “So the good news is that it’s at least six months,” Fauci said. “Hopefully a lot more. But in direct answer to your question, if it turns out a year or a year and a half, we very well may need to get booster shots to keep up the level of protection.”