© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla talks throughout a press convention with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen after a go to to supervise the manufacturing of the Pfizer-BioNtech COVID-19 vaccine on the manufacturing unit of U.S. pharmaceutical firm Pfiz
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JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Pfizer Inc (NYSE:) Chief Executive Albert Bourla stated on Saturday that an annual COVID-19 vaccine can be preferable to extra frequent booster photographs in combating the coronavirus pandemic.
Pfizer/BioNtech's COVID-19 vaccine has proven to be efficient in opposition to extreme illness and loss of life attributable to the heavily-mutated Omicron variant however much less efficient in stopping transmission.
With circumstances hovering, some international locations have expanded COVID-19 vaccine booster programmes or shortened the hole between photographs as governments scramble to shore up safety.
In an interview with Israel's N12 News, Bourla was requested whether or not he sees booster photographs being administered each 4 to 5 months regularly.
"This will not be a good scenario. What I'm hoping (is) that we will have a vaccine that you will have to do once a year," Bourla stated.
"Once a year - it is easier to convince people to do it. It is easier for people to remember.
"So from a public well being perspective, it is a perfect state of affairs. We want to see if we are able to create a vaccine that covers Omicron and does not neglect the opposite variants and that may very well be an answer," Bourla stated.
Bourla has stated Pfizer may very well be able to file for approval for a redesigned vaccine to struggle Omicron, and mass produce it, as quickly as March.
Citing three research, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) stated on Friday {that a} third dose of an mRNA vaccine is essential to combating Omicron, offering 90% safety in opposition to hospitalization.
A preliminary examine revealed by Israel's Sheba Medical Center on Monday discovered {that a} fourth shot will increase antibodies to even larger ranges than the third however was seemingly not enoughto fend off Omicron. Nonetheless, a second booster was nonetheless suggested for threat teams, Sheba stated.
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