By FENIT NIRAPPIL and LENA H. SUN/The Washington Post
Federal authorities are preparing to approve updated coronavirus vaccines targeting the latest virus variants late this week, a move that could make shots available before Labor Day, according to a federal health official and a person familiar with the plans who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a confidential process.
Consumers should be able to start getting shots at pharmacies within a week after approval and at doctor’s offices soon after.
The timing of the release is too late for Americans who were looking to shore up their immunity before summer travel and the return of the school year, or for those who face heightened risk because of their age or underlying conditions. In recent weeks, some people weighed whether to get an outdated vaccine for partial protection more quickly or to hang on for the updated version. And those who didn’t want to wait discovered existing shots were no longer easy to find.
“The strategy of emptying the refrigerator between seasons works fine for influenza, but not for covid,” Moore said.
But he couldn’t find a coronavirus vaccine at Rite Aid, Walgreens or Walmart before giving up.
Scott Orshan, a 67-year-old high school teacher in New Jersey, wondered whether the protection he received from his fall shot had faded away as he heard about friends and relatives getting covid this summer. The new school year looms after Labor Day. But Walgreens was out of stock when he checked.
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