(Newser)
– With US vaccination figures far behind, health authorities are studying various possibilities to increase the figures. One is to halve the dose of the Modern vaccine in order to expand supplies, a proposal the FDA is expected to consider this week. But like the New York News as reported, there is another controversial proposal in wide circulation, which calls for delaying the second shot, the “reinforcement” shot, so that more people can get their initial shot. Three vaccines now in use around the world, those from Moderna, Pfizer and AstraZeneca, are asking people to take a second dose about three or four weeks later, for Hill. But advocates say removing that timeline would allow more people to get their first shot and acquire at least some protection. Not everyone, including Dr. Anthony Fauci, agrees.
“I wouldn’t be in favor of that,” he said last week, adding on Sunday that the strategy “goes against science,” CNBC reports. Fauci explains that there is not enough data to support the idea that the plan is safe. But in one Washington Post op-ed, two health officials argue that delaying the second shot makes sense. Cases are on the rise and supplies are limited, and something has to be given, write Robert Wachter of the University of California at San Francisco and Ashish Jha of Brown University. Yes, the data is not complete, but what we have is “reassuring,” they write. “In a perfect world, there would be no compromises. But if 2020 taught us anything, it’s that we don’t live in a perfect world.” The UK has taken the approach of delaying the second shot, Hill notes. About 4 million Americans have been vaccinated, well below the target of more than 20 million by now. (Read more stories about the coronavirus vaccine).