Mecklenburg County reports 1st pediatric monkeypox case: Wednesday, Aug. 24

Mecklenburg County health officials expressed confidence that they can work through the monkeypox vaccine waiting list in the coming days after administering hundreds of doses during Charlotte Pride weekend.

Dr. Raynard Washington said Mecklenburg County is down to about 660 people on the list. The health department anticipates getting those folks set with appointments by the end of the week. Washington called vaccine distribution during Pride weekend a "success," praising staff workers for meeting at-risk individuals in public settings.

Washington said the county vaccinated roughly 540 people who meet North Carolina's criteria for high risk. As of Tuesday afternoon, 3,300 people have been vaccinated in Mecklenburg County.

READ MORE: https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/health/monkeypox/monkeypox-vaccine-mecklenburg-county-update-charlotte-pride-raynard-washington/275-0ae1f8f5-a8d2-4435-b4c1-5033724d394e

Pfizer asked U.S. regulators Monday to authorize its combination COVID-19 vaccine that adds protection against the newest omicron relatives — a key step toward opening a fall booster campaign.

The Food and Drug Administration ordered vaccine makers to tweak their shots to target BA.4 and BA.5 that are better than ever at dodging immunity from earlier vaccination or infection.

Pfizer and its partner BioNTech aim to offer updated boosters to people 12 and older, and shots could begin within weeks if the FDA quickly clears the modified vaccine — a step not expected to require waiting on new studies.

Moderna is expected to file a similar application soon for updated boosters for adults. The U.S. has a contract to buy 105 million of the Pfizer doses and 66 million Moderna ones, assuming FDA gives the green light.

“It’s going to be really important that people this fall and winter get the new shots. It’s designed for the virus that’s out there,” White House COVID-19 coordinator Dr. Ashish Jha said last week.

For now at least. BA.5 currently is causing nearly all COVID-19 infections in the U.S. and much of the world. There’s no way to know if it still will be a threat this winter -- or if another mutant will have replaced it.

READ MORE: https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/health/coronavirus/vaccine/pfizer-updated-covid-vaccine-booster-fall/507-be2be25f-8daf-4c92-b516-78d59ce1eb5f

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