US Recommends Additional Vaccine Shot for Americans Over 17
2021-09-25
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1The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released new recommendations for additional coronavirus vaccine shots Friday.
2The CDC recommended that almost all Americans above age 17 may get booster shots of the COVID-19 vaccine made by drug companies Pfizer and BioNTech.
3CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky made the decision.
4She agreed with several recommendations from a group of advisers late Thursday.
5The advisers said boosters should be offered to people 65 and older, those living in retirement centers and anyone aged 50 to 64 with serious health problems.
6The booster would be given at least six months after a person's last Pfizer shot.
7The advisers did not say if boosters are necessary for those who had received the Johnson and Johnson or the Moderna vaccines.
8Walensky decided to make one recommendation that the group had rejected.
9On Thursday, the group voted against recommending that people should get a booster if they are 64 years old or younger and work in health-care or have a job that puts them at risk of being exposed to the virus.
10Walensky disagreed and made that recommendation.
11She included anyone living with a high risk of exposure, such as prisoners or people in homeless shelters.
12The group had recommended booster shots for people ages 18 to 49 who have long-term health problems.
13But they did not recommend boosters for healthy health care workers or for those who are not at high risk.
14The group voted nine to six to reject that idea.
15Walensky, however, decided to ignore the groups' decision and released a statement.
16"As CDC Director, it is my job to recognize where our actions can have the greatest impact," the statement said.
17Walensky added, "In a pandemic, even with uncertainty, we must take actions that we anticipate will do the greatest good."
18Experts say getting the unvaccinated their first shots remains the most important issue.
19All three of the COVID-19 vaccines used in the U.S. protect against severe illness, hospitalization and death, even with the spread of the stronger delta variant.
20About 182 million Americans are fully vaccinated.
21That is 55 percent of the population.
22"We can give boosters to people, but that's not really the answer to this pandemic," said Dr. Helen Keipp Talbot of Vanderbilt University.
23"Hospitals are full because people are not vaccinated. We are declining care to people who deserve care because we are full of unvaccinated COVID-positive patients."
24The administration of President Joe Biden announced a plan last month to give booster shots to nearly everyone.
25But the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the CDC have recommended booster shots for smaller parts of the population.
26During the meeting Thursday, Walensky said that vaccinating the unvaccinated remains the top goal "here in America and around the world."
27Walensky said the research and information about who really needs a booster right away "are not perfect."
28But she added, "They are what we have in this moment."
29The CDC advisers expressed concern over the millions of Americans who received Moderna or Johnson & Johnson shots early in the vaccination effort.
30The government has not considered boosters for vaccines made by those companies.
31It does not have information on whether it is safe or effective for people vaccinated with other vaccines to receive the Pfizer booster.
32About 26 million Americans got their last Pfizer dose at least six months ago.
33About half of those people are 65 or older.
34Public health experts not involved in Thursday's decision said it is unlikely people seeking a booster at a drugstore or other site will be required to prove they qualify.
35Even with the introduction of boosters, someone who has received just the first two doses would still be considered fully vaccinated, according to the CDC's Dr. Kathleen Dooling.
36For most people, if you're not in a group recommended for a booster, "it's really because we think you're well-protected," said Dr. Matthew Daley of Kaiser Permanente Colorado.
37I'm Jonathan Evans.
1The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released new recommendations for additional coronavirus vaccine shots Friday. 2The CDC recommended that almost all Americans above age 17 may get booster shots of the COVID-19 vaccine made by drug companies Pfizer and BioNTech. 3CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky made the decision. She agreed with several recommendations from a group of advisers late Thursday. 4The advisers said boosters should be offered to people 65 and older, those living in retirement centers and anyone aged 50 to 64 with serious health problems. The booster would be given at least six months after a person's last Pfizer shot. The advisers did not say if boosters are necessary for those who had received the Johnson and Johnson or the Moderna vaccines. 5Walensky decided to make one recommendation that the group had rejected. 6On Thursday, the group voted against recommending that people should get a booster if they are 64 years old or younger and work in health-care or have a job that puts them at risk of being exposed to the virus. 7Walensky disagreed and made that recommendation. She included anyone living with a high risk of exposure, such as prisoners or people in homeless shelters. 8The group had recommended booster shots for people ages 18 to 49 who have long-term health problems. But they did not recommend boosters for healthy health care workers or for those who are not at high risk. 9The group voted nine to six to reject that idea. Walensky, however, decided to ignore the groups' decision and released a statement. 10"As CDC Director, it is my job to recognize where our actions can have the greatest impact," the statement said. Walensky added, "In a pandemic, even with uncertainty, we must take actions that we anticipate will do the greatest good." 11Experts say getting the unvaccinated their first shots remains the most important issue. 12All three of the COVID-19 vaccines used in the U.S. protect against severe illness, hospitalization and death, even with the spread of the stronger delta variant. About 182 million Americans are fully vaccinated. That is 55 percent of the population. 13"We can give boosters to people, but that's not really the answer to this pandemic," said Dr. Helen Keipp Talbot of Vanderbilt University. 14"Hospitals are full because people are not vaccinated. We are declining care to people who deserve care because we are full of unvaccinated COVID-positive patients." 15The administration of President Joe Biden announced a plan last month to give booster shots to nearly everyone. But the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the CDC have recommended booster shots for smaller parts of the population. 16During the meeting Thursday, Walensky said that vaccinating the unvaccinated remains the top goal "here in America and around the world." 17Walensky said the research and information about who really needs a booster right away "are not perfect." But she added, "They are what we have in this moment." 18The CDC advisers expressed concern over the millions of Americans who received Moderna or Johnson & Johnson shots early in the vaccination effort. 19The government has not considered boosters for vaccines made by those companies. It does not have information on whether it is safe or effective for people vaccinated with other vaccines to receive the Pfizer booster. 20About 26 million Americans got their last Pfizer dose at least six months ago. About half of those people are 65 or older. 21Public health experts not involved in Thursday's decision said it is unlikely people seeking a booster at a drugstore or other site will be required to prove they qualify. 22Even with the introduction of boosters, someone who has received just the first two doses would still be considered fully vaccinated, according to the CDC's Dr. Kathleen Dooling. 23For most people, if you're not in a group recommended for a booster, "it's really because we think you're well-protected," said Dr. Matthew Daley of Kaiser Permanente Colorado. 24I'm Jonathan Evans. 25The Associated Press reported this story. Susan Shand adapted it for Learning English. Mario Ritter, Jr. was the editor. 26__________________________________________________ 27Words in This Story 28booster shots -n. an extra amount of a vaccine that give additional protection against a disease 29impact -n. an effect; a result of some action 30anticipate -n. to think of something that might happen in the future 31variant - n. something that is different in some way from others of the same kind 32decline -v. to say no to someone 33deserve -v. used to say that someone should or should not have or be given something 34We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section, and visit our Facebook page.