Talk of booster shots is in the air! The FDA is meeting this upcoming Friday to discuss the approval of an extra dose in order to boost immunity.
A recent paper in The Lancet reviewed data from dozens of papers (either peer-reviewed or pre-print) and grouped them by vaccine type (mRNA, protein, inactivated virus, or viral vector) and major variant (Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Gamma).
Ultimately mRNA vaccines are holding immunity stronger than other vaccine types, and while Delta is particularly contagious, it doesn’t seem to escape immunity nearly as much as Beta or Gamma! This scientific data will guide a decision.
A booster can either be approved for everyone (after a certain time period post the primary immunity), for select groups (certain ages/co-morbidities/vaccine types beyond the already approved immunocompromised individuals), or not for anyone yet (seems unlikely).
Having an idea of what the data looks like will help you interpret the decision made later in the week!