Cook County residents wait as Moderna seeks clearance for COVID booster doses

Last month, the Food and Drug Administration authorized booster shots of Pfizer’s vaccine for older Americans and other groups with heightened vulnerability to COVID-19.

Booster doses were administered last week in Cook County for those who had a Pfizer vaccine and met certain criteria, namely being 65 or older.
 
Boosters are part of a sweeping effort by the Biden administration to shore up protection amid the delta variant and potential waning vaccine immunity, the Associated Press reports.
 
In related news, the FDA is convening its outside panel of advisers next week to review booster data from both J&J and Moderna. It’s the first step in a review process that also includes sign-off from the leadership of both the FDA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. If both agencies give the go-ahead, Americans could begin getting J&J and Moderna boosters later this month, the AP reports. 

Most Cook County residents received the Moderna vaccine, according to local public health officials. 
 
There is a timely element to getting boosters, as most Minnesota counties, including Cook County, continue to see a spike in their case count. There are multiple active cases in Cook County at this time, including at least five new cases in the first several days of October.
 
Last month was troublesome across the state as the delta variant spread. More than 275 Minnesotans died from COVID-19 during September, the highest monthly total since January.
 
WTIP’s Joe Friedrichs spoke with Cook County Public Health Supervisor Grace Grinager Oct. 4 about the current situation with COVID-19 in the community. Audio below.