US CDC Director: "Booster Shots for Ages 12-15 Could Be Approved Within Days"

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has predicted that COVID-19 vaccine booster shots may be approved for adolescents aged 12 to 15 within days or weeks.

On the 29th (local time), CDC Director Rochelle Walensky appeared on CNN and said, "The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is currently reviewing booster shot administration for those aged 12 to 15," adding, "The CDC will promptly follow the FDA's decision once it is made."

She further expressed hope that this would happen within a few days to a few weeks.

Currently, booster shots are only approved for those aged 16 and older in the U.S.

Regarding children under 5 years old, for whom vaccines have not yet been approved, Walensky said, "Pharmaceutical companies are working on data for children under 5," adding, "It won't be next month, but we are working hard."

Walensky also clarified the controversial guidelines on shortening the isolation period for asymptomatic COVID-19 infections.

She stated, "This decision was made in light of the fact that more confirmed cases will emerge, many of whom will be asymptomatic or have mild symptoms."

Regarding the decision not to require a rapid antigen test before ending isolation to confirm a negative result, she explained, "We decided not to include rapid testing because we still do not know how accurately rapid tests can determine infectiousness or predict it."

Previously, the CDC recommended that asymptomatic infected individuals could end isolation after 5 days if they have no symptoms and could interact with others while wearing a mask.

However, some health experts criticized this CDC decision, arguing that a rapid antigen test with lower accuracy should be conducted before ending isolation to confirm a negative result.

Walensky countered by saying that even if a rapid antigen test is negative after 5 days of isolation, it cannot be confidently concluded that the person is no longer infectious, and they did not want to give patients a false sense of security. Therefore, instead, they recommended wearing a mask for 5 days.

She also noted that even if the test is positive, scientific data shows that the peak infectious period would have passed after 5 days, and mask-wearing should still continue.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.