Pfizer’s COVID-19 Booster Shot Increases Protection Against Delta Variant

By Teddy Grant Published: July 28, 2021

Pfizer’s COVID-19 Booster Shot Increases Protection Against Delta Variant

FILE - In this Feb. 10, 2021, file photo, a man receives a COVID-19 vaccine at the Martin Luther King Senior Center in North Las Vegas. The nation is poised to get a third vaccine against COVID-19, but health officials are concerned that at first glance the Johnson & Johnson shot may not be seen as equal to other options from Pfizer and Moderna. (AP Photo/John Locher, File)

By: Teddy Grant

New data from Pfizer/BioNTech suggests that a third dose of the company’s COVID-19 vaccine can “strongly” boost protection against the Delta variant, CNN reported.

Antibodies for people between the ages of 18 to 55 who get a third dose increase more than five-fold, the data shows. The chance of protection is greater for people between the ages of 65 to 85, where antibodies are more than 11-fold after the third shot against the Delta variant, according to CNN.

According to FOX 8, trials for the booster shot will begin in August.

The U.S. is averaging over 57,000 COVID-19 cases a day and 24,000 hospitalizations. The Delta variant, which is more transmissible than previous strains of the virus, is said to be the cause of the recent surge in cases.

The nation could see about 200,000 cases a day in the next four to six weeks, former CDC Director Dr. Tom Frieden told CNN.

“We’re heading into a rough time. It’s likely, if our trajectory is similar to that in the United Kingdom, that we could see as many as 200,000 cases a day,” he said. “You will see a steady increase in deaths, and these are preventable deaths.”

The CDC has recommended that vaccinated people wear masks indoors in parts of the country where there’s a surge in infections.