The Biden administration plans to give Americans 50 years and up an option to get a second booster shot: report

• The Biden administration plans to give older Americans a chance to get a second booster shot.
• The New York Times reported that Americans who are 50 years or older will be eligible.
• They would be able to get a second booster of either the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccine.

The Biden administration plans to give older Americans the option to get a second booster shot to protect against the coronavirus.

Those who are 50 or older will be able to get a second booster shot of either the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccine, The New York Times reported on Friday, citing several people familiar with the plan to do so. 

This comes as health officials have once again started to warn that the US might see an increase in COVID-19 cases in the coming weeks. 

Anthony Fauci, the nation’s coronavirus expert and the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said last week that he “would not be surprised if in the next few weeks we see somewhat of either a flattening of our diminution or maybe even an increase” during an interview on ABC News podcast “Start Here.”

His warning comes as a subvariant of Omicron called BA.2 is spreading rapidly throughout Europe. Experts say the subvariant could soon become the dominant strain in the United States and could result in an impending surge.

BA.2 is causing a surge in positive COVID-19 cases in Europe. In the United States, about a third of new cases can be linked back to BA.2 so far, The Times reported. 

People familiar with the White House’s plan told The Times the second booster could receive authorization from the Food and Drug Administration as early as next week. 

Pharmaceutical executives have expressed conflicting stances on whether additional shots past the initial booster are necessary.

Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla, for example, said earlier this month in an interview on CBS’s “Face the Nation” that he believed a fourth dose, or second booster shot, was necessary. 

But Moderna President Stephen Hoge told Insider that only certain groups of people would need the fourth shot at this point in time.

“For those who are immune-compromised, those who are older adults, over the age of 50 or at least 65, we want to strongly recommend and encourage [a fourth shot], the same way we do with flu vaccines,” he said.