The U.S. could cut some doses of Moderna vaccine in half to speed up, an official says

(Reuters) – The U.S. government is considering halving the dose of Moderna ‘s COVID – 19 vaccine to speed up vaccinations, a federal official said Sunday.

Moncef Slaoui, head of Operation Warp Speed, the federal vaccination program, told CBS’s “Face the Nation” that officials were in talks with Moderna and the Food and Drug Administration about the idea. The Moderna vaccine requires two injections.

“We know for the Moderna vaccine, giving people between the ages of 18 and 55 half the dose, two doses, half the dose, which simply means achieving twice the dose of the vaccine. people with our doses, ”said Slaoui.

“We know it triggers an equivalent immune response” to the full dose, he said.

Moderna and the FDA could not be immediately reached for comment.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it had delivered 4,225,756 initial doses of COVID-19 vaccines in the country as of Saturday morning and dispensed 13,071,925 doses.

The US has also received a vaccine from Pfizer, which is similar to two Moderna models. Vaccines have fallen far short of early targets, as officials hoped 20 million people would have been vaccinated by the end of 2020.

Slaoui said he was hopeful vaccinations would continue to accelerate. He rejected the suggestion that officials should prioritize giving one view to more people, rather than withholding doses for a second view, saying it was cutting vaccine doses. Moderna in half “a more accountable approach based on facts and data.”

Slaoui said it would be unlikely that we would know until the end of spring whether people with vaccines can spread the disease to others.