CDC Recommends Updated COVID-19 Vaccines for All Ages 6 Months and Older Ahead of 2024-2025 Immunization Season

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has officially recommended that all individuals aged 6 months and older receive the latest COVID-19 vaccine, regardless of their prior vaccination status, for the 2024-2025 immunization season.

This recommendation aligns with the consensus vote from the CDC's external advisory panel, who unanimously endorsed the use of the latest FDA-authorized or approved COVID-19 vaccines across the 6 months and older population. The CDC specified that this recommendation will take immediate effect once Moderna, Novavax, and Pfizer's new vaccines are formally launched later this year.

Earlier this month, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had requested vaccine manufacturers to update their new vaccines to target the KP.2 variant, rather than the previous JN.1 lineage, where feasible. Moderna and Novavax have since submitted applications to the FDA, seeking authorization to update their 2024 fall vaccines to the JN.1 strain.

Novavax stated that upon FDA clearance, it plans to provide its updated vaccine at the start of the vaccination season, emphasizing its broad cross-neutralizing antibody responses against variants including KP.2 and KP.3. Meanwhile, Pfizer is focused on the development of its messenger RNA vaccines, which typically have a faster turnaround time compared to Novavax's protein-based vaccines.

Earlier this year, the JN.1 variant had been the dominant strain in the US. While it is no longer widespread, CDC data shows it still accounted for around 4.4% of cases in the two weeks ending June 22nd. Currently, the KP.2 strain is estimated to make up about 20.8% of cases, while the KP.3 variant has become the dominant one, comprising 33.1% of cases.

Pfizer stated that it is in discussions with global regulators, including the FDA, to evaluate the composition of future COVID vaccine formulations. Moderna has also committed to having updated vaccines ready in time for the fall vaccination campaign. Pfizer and its partner BioNTech have likewise indicated they will provide updated vaccines immediately upon approval.