New COVID booster shot rollout expected near Labor Day: officials
By
Alicia Lasek
Aug 25, 2022
The FDA expects to soon authorize omicron-targeting shots. The White House is planning to distribute them as part of a fall vaccination campaign, federal officials say.
Variant-adapted COVID shot approved in U.K.; Novavax requests U.S. booster nod
By
Alicia Lasek
Aug 16, 2022
Novavax wants its U.S. vaccine authorization to extend to a booster shot, and the U.K. has approved a two-component vaccine that directly tackles the omicron variant.
Feds mull swift sanction of 2nd coronavirus booster
By
Alicia Lasek
Mar 25, 2022
The Biden administration may authorize a second booster shot within weeks, a new report finds. Officials want to get ahead of an expected uptick in SARS-CoV-2 infections, sources say.
CMS shares LTC booster data; coverage among residents meets national average
By
Alicia Lasek
Feb 10, 2022
Nursing home booster vaccination data is now available on the Medicare.gov Care Compare website as part of CMS’s effort to help increase facility vaccination coverage, the agency said Wednesday.
AARP calls on nursing homes to require COVID-19 boosters for residents, staff
By
Alicia Lasek
Jan 21, 2022
COVID-19 infections are at an all-time high among residents and staff and resident death rates are rising. Now is the time to “get shots in arms,” AARP leaders urged operators.
Report: Nearly 80 percent of U.S. workers want employers to encourage or require vax for in-person staff
By
Alicia Lasek
Jan 20, 2022
U.S. workers have been rattled by the omicron surge and most are looking to their employer to stay fully engaged in COVID-19 precautions, analysts say.
HHS to LTC operators: Step up your booster clinic timelines before year ends
By
Alicia Lasek
Dec 22, 2021
Long-term care operators should speed up plans to help residents boost their immunity before an expected COVID-19 surge hits, a federal official told virtual town hall attendees Tuesday.
CDC: Boosted nursing home residents 10 times less likely to be infected with COVID-19
By
Alicia Lasek
Dec 17, 2021
The news, delivered by CDC Director Rochelle Walensky, is a bit of cheer amidst other new evidence that COVID-19 cases are increasing among fully vaccinated long-term care residents.
Severe breakthrough cases spiked among seniors after delta appeared: study
By
Alicia Lasek
Dec 07, 2021
The more time that had elapsed since vaccination, the greater the odds of severe reinfection illness for older patients, physicians from Yale University found. The results highlight the need for timely...
COVID shot boosters for all adults will help to reduce confusion, FDA says
By
Alicia Lasek
Nov 22, 2021
The FDA “heard loud and clear” that a simpler booster strategy was needed, its vaccine chief says. But the action may be too late to head off a winter virus surge, observers say.