Biden administration plans booster program for mRNA COVID-19 vaccines; will add nursing home staff vaccinations to Medicare, Medicaid conditions of participation

COVID-19 vaccine booster shots will be widely available to the American public, starting next month, according to a joint statement today from Biden administration health officials. The booster program, for recipients of the Pfizer and Moderna mRNA vaccines, will begin the week of Sept. 20 for individuals who are eight months removed from their second COVID-19 vaccine dose. The plan is contingent on a Food and Drug Administration review of data for third doses of the mRNA vaccines, alongside the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices issuing booster dose recommendations based on a thorough review of the evidence.

At this time the booster program does not apply to individuals who received the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine, a program that began later than that of Pfizer and Moderna and thus lacks data to support an informed decision on boosters’ necessity.

Meanwhile, the Biden administration is expected in September to issue emergency regulations requiring nursing homes, as a condition of Medicare and Medicaid participation, fully vaccinate their staff. The requirement would apply to more than 15,000 facilities and their 1.3 million health care workers.