Vaccine maker asks FDA to greenlight updated omicron booster shot

Virus Outbreak Moderna Kids
A health worker administers a dose of a Moderna COVID-19 vaccine during a vaccination clinic in Norristown, Pa., Tuesday, Dec. 7, 2021. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)

The U.S. is one step closer to having new COVID-19 booster shots available as soon as this fall.

On Monday, the drugmakers Pfizer and BioNTech announced that they’ve asked the Food and Drug Administration to authorize an updated version of their COVID-19 vaccine designed specifically to target the omicron subvariants that are dominant in the U.S.

More than 90% of cases are caused by the BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants, which took off this summer — but the vaccines being used were designed for the original coronavirus strain from several years ago.