US CDC advisers could vote on Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine booster on Thursday

A U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advisory panel could vote on the use of a third shot of Pfizer Inc and partner BioNTech SE's COVID-19 vaccine on Thursday, an agency official said at a public meeting of the panel on Wednesday.

The CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) is meeting on Sept 22-23 to weigh which populations would most benefit from a third shot as it awaits a decision on authorization by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Pfizer has asked the FDA to approve the third shot for all people aged 16 and over, but a panel of outside advisors to the FDA last Friday said there was only evidence for a shot being needed by people aged 65 and older. The FDA has not yet said how it plans to proceed.