The Biden administration plans to begin offering next-generation COVID-19 booster shots as soon as the Labor Day weekend, according to people familiar with the matter, aiming to stave off a fall surge in cases of the disease.
Food and Drug Administration regulators are expected to clear the use of COVID-19 vaccines reformulated for omicron variants next week, the people said. They asked not to be identified ahead of an official announcement.
The so-called bivalent vaccines are designed to better protect against subvariants of the virus that are now dominant in the U.S., BA.4 and BA.5. The shots are poised to begin shipping next week and can be administered after Centers for Disease Control and Prevention clearance.
