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FDA Authorizes, CDC Recommends Third Dose of COVID-19 Vaccine for Immunocompromised Individuals

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The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last week amended emergency use authorizations for Pfizer and Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccines to allow for the use of a third, additional dose for certain immunocompromised individuals, specifically for “solid organ transplant recipients or those who are diagnosed with conditions that are considered to have an equivalent level of immunocompromise.”

The agency instructs that the third dose be administered at least 28 days following the two-dose regimen of the same vaccine to individuals ages 18 or older for Moderna and ages 12 or older for Pfizer. On Friday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) formally recommended the endorsed use of a third dose of the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines for people with moderately to severely compromised immune systems, following a unanimous vote from the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) also announced that a third dose of the COVID-19 vaccines is to be made available at no cost to immunocompromised Medicare beneficiaries. CMS will continue to pay providers $40 to administer this additional dose, the same amount it pays for other doses of the COVID-19 vaccine.