Fourth covid-19 vaccine, do you need it?

People are getting a second booster shot of the covid-19 vaccine, after The FDA and CDC OK’d a second booster shot for people age 50 and older last week. The decision was based on data from Israel, which rolled out fourth doses months ago. Dr. Peter Marks, who heads the FDA office responsible for vaccine safety and efficacy, said shortly after the decision that another round of boosters will likely be needed in the fall.

Katelyn Jetelina, an Assistant Professor of Epidemiology, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston scoured the latest research on the need for a second booster in a blogpost on the conversation.

In her view, it is not unreasonable to skip a second booster with confirmed infection of the omicron. This doesn’t mean that people should purposefully get SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. But hybrid immunity is a viable path to protection.

To sum up, there is strong evidence that a fourth dose – or second booster – provides meaningful protection among vulnerable populations, including people over 60. But it is far more important that people receive their first, second, and third doses.