FDA panel endorses booster shot for J&J COVID-19 vaccine

By MATTHEW PERRONE and LAURAN NEERGAARD
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — A panel of U.S. health advisers has endorsed booster doses of Johnson & Johnson’s single-shot COVID-19 vaccine. The Food and Drug Administration panel said Friday that the booster should be offered at least two months after immunization but didn’t suggest a firm time. The FDA isn’t bound by the vote but its ultimate decision could help expand the nation’s booster campaign. Booster doses of Pfizer’s vaccine began last month for people at high risk of COVID-19, and the FDA advisory panel has recommended the same approach for Moderna. In contrast, the panel backed boosters for anyone 18 and older who received the J&J vaccine.