MINNEAPOLIS — Pfizer announced Thursday that it is seeing waning immunity from its vaccine, and that they are working on developing a third dose.
But science hasn't spoken yet.
So what do we make of this information?
COVID-19 still remains shrouded in mystery, but after more than a year of living with it, we know some things are for sure, according to University of Minnesota's bioethics professor Dr. Jennifer Needle.
"I think we should look at COVID no differently, because I don't think COVID will disappear," Dr. Needle said. "It's not polio. It will not be gone from the Earth. Especially when we have 30% of the population choosing to be not vaccinated."
"So what we don't know about COVID yet is how long our immunity from the vaccine will last," Needle added.
That was until Thursday. Pfizer announced it is seeing immunity from the coronavirus wane in those who have received its two shots. They added that a third shot - a booster - may be needed.
"It is not uncommon for vaccines to require boosters at various periods of time, because by its nature what a vaccine does is rev up your immune system to be able to respond to the virus that it sees," Needle said. "So over time if your body is not exposed to that, it is less able to rev up over time."
But the fact that this information came from Pfizer first, and not from any of the health officials...well...
"We all are aware that there's probably some waning immunity as far as those who have received either Pfizer or Moderna, but I think that it may be - a bit ahead of the science as far as being premature in convincing the public that the vaccines themselves are not longer lasting," Needle said.
In fact, the CDC and FDA sent out a joint statement:
"The United States is fortunate to have highly effective vaccines that are widely available for those aged 12 and up. People who are fully vaccinated are protected from severe disease and death, including from the variants currently circulating in the country such as Delta. People who are not vaccinated remain at risk. Virtually all COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths are among those who are unvaccinated. We encourage Americans who have not yet been vaccinated to get vaccinated as soon as possible to protect themselves and their community.
Americans who have been fully vaccinated do not need a booster shot at this time. FDA, CDC, and NIH are engaged in a science-based, rigorous process to consider whether or when a booster might be necessary. This process takes into account laboratory data, clinical trial data, and cohort data – which can include data from specific pharmaceutical companies, but does not rely on those data exclusively. We continue to review any new data as it becomes available and will keep the public informed. We are prepared for booster doses if and when the science demonstrates that they are needed."
The World Health Organization echoed similar sentiments in a statement as well.
"We don't know whether booster vaccines will be needed to maintain protection against COVID-19 until additional data is collected, but the question is under consideration by researchers.
Clinical trials on these vaccines only began a year ago, and roll-out across populations even more recently. There is, therefore, limited data available on how long the protection from current doses lasts and whether an additional booster dose would be beneficial and for whom."
"I think anytime you're talking about Big Pharma and their pursuit of helping the public understand the need for a drug, you have to recognize that they do have conflict of interest," Needle explained. "In that they are providing a service that is in the general public health but they are making a profit off it, so I really believe that in this COVID space right now we should really be putting our energy into listening to the top scientists, medical professionals and top public health officials."