FDA Endorses COVID Third Dose For Elderly, High Risk NJ Residents

NEW JERSEY - Following the federal Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (FDA VRBPAC) unanimous recommendation for an emergency use authorization (EUA) for a third dose of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine, New Jersey’s top health officials are preparing to inoculate elderly and high-risk residents for the third time.

The FDA committee issued its recommendation Friday to provide a Pfizer booster dose six months after the completion of the first Pfizer dose for those 65 or older or are at high risk of severe COVID-19.

Following the FDA’s final authorization, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) will meet and issue recommendations and guidance on the use and eligibility of the booster shot. The ACIP is set to meet this week to make further recommendations.

“We are awaiting final guidance from the CDC and FDA before we open the window for folks who qualify for a booster to get that shot,” Gov. Phil Murphy said during a Monday news conference. “We anticipate this guidance in the coming days. In the meantime, we are continuing to prepare to push the additional doses necessary out through our vaccine distribution network.”

The governor added that the state is currently working to ensure that New Jersey has a sufficient supply ready to go once the CDC and FDA gives final guidance.

“The governor and the [health] department will provide updates to the public once eligibility guidance is available,” New Jersey Department of Health Commissioner Judy Persichilli said in a statement last week. “In the meantime, the department will continue efforts to vaccinate as many people as possible, especially 12- to 17-year-olds, and reminds people to get their second dose to ensure greater protection.”

While the booster shot is expected to become available soon, some New Jerseyans already have a third dose available to them as third doses are currently being administered to those who are immunocompromised. If the six-month window is recommended by the CDC, Murphy said as of Sept. 20, 2.4 million New Jersey residents will become eligible for the booster shot. Read more: COVID-19 Booster Shot Or Third Dose? Here's The Difference

The CDC currently recommends that moderately or severely immunocompromised patients receive a third dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine. That includes people who have:

• been receiving active cancer treatment for tumors or cancers of the blood
• received an organ transplant and are taking medicine to suppress the immune system
• received a stem cell transplant within the last two years or are taking medicine to suppress the immune system
• moderate or severe primary immunodeficiency (such as DiGeorge syndrome, Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome)
• advanced or untreated HIV infection
• active treatment with high-dose corticosteroids or other drugs that may suppress your immune response

Learn more about eligibility from the CDC.

Persichilli noted that, given upticks in cases and deaths, the state department strongly encourages all eligible residents to get vaccinated as soon as possible, including the third dose of Pfizer or Moderna for those who are immunocompromised.

Because the Johnson & Johnson vaccine wasn't given in the United States until 70 days after the Pfizer and Moderna shots, the data needed to make the decision on booster doses isn't available yet, according to the CDC. More data is expected in the coming weeks.

The officials’ remarks come as New Jersey reports 5,378,465 fully vaccinated individuals. Among those fully vaccinated are 22,246 breakthrough cases with 111 deaths in the Garden State.

You can find a local vaccination site in New Jersey at covid19.nj.gov/finder or by calling 1-855-568-0545. Caregivers or representatives of immunocompromised, homebound individuals can contact the New Jersey Vaccine Call Center at 855-568-0545 for additional guidance.

With reporting by Russ Crespolini, Josh Bakan and Anthony Bellano.