Moderna on Tuesday said it submitted a request for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to authorize an updated version of its COVID-19 vaccine targeting the latest omicron subvariants.
The application comes ahead of a fall booster shot campaign. Assuming the FDA signs off, the company said its shots will be ready to ship in September.
The application, per instructions previously given by the FDA, is for a “bivalent” vaccine that targets the BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants of omicron currently circulating,
as well as the original form of the virus.
The purpose of a “bivalent” shot is to take the protection offered by the initial vaccine and then add to it by including the BA.4 and BA.5 spike protein.
Moderna’s vaccine is intended for adults aged 18 and older. Pfizer’s vaccine will be for adults and adolescents aged 12 and older.
Pfizer submitted its request for FDA authorization on Monday.
The Biden administration has procured 175 million doses of bivalent COVID-19 vaccine for distribution and administration from both Pfizer and Moderna,
enough booster doses to ensure a “robust and complete national vaccination campaign through the fall and early winter,”