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The United States will start offering COVID-19 booster shots next month to individuals who were fully vaccinated with the two-dose Moderna and Pfizer messenger RNA vaccines.

In a joint statement on Wednesday, U.S. public health officials and medical experts including Dr. Rochelle Walensky, Director of the Cenrers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Dr. Janet Woodcock, Acting Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, stated that the COVID-19 vaccines authorized in the country remained "remarkably effective in reducing risl of severe disease, hospitalization, and death" even against the highly-transmissible Delta variant.

However, they explained that a COVID-19 booster shot is necessary to "provide long-lasting protection." Scientific data showed that protection against mild and moderate disease starts to decrease overtime given the dominance of the Delta variant.

According to the health and medical experts, the COVID -19 booster shot will be administered eight months after a person received the second dose.

They are prepared to offer the COVID-19 booster shots starting on September 20. The third dose of the Moderna and Pfizer mRNA messenger vacciners are still subject toauthorization from the FDA and the CDC.

“We have developed a plan to begin offering these booster shots this fall subject to FDA conducting an independent evaluation and determination of the safety and effectiveness of a third dose of the Pfizer and Moderna mRNA vaccines and CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) issuing booster dose recommendations based on a thorough review of the evidence. We are prepared to offer booster shots for all Americans beginning the week of September 20 and starting 8 months after an individual’s second dose. At that time, the individuals who were fully vaccinated earliest in the vaccination rollout, including many health care providers, nursing home residents, and other seniors, will likely be eligible for a booster." according to the U.S. public health and medical experts.

In addition, they will also start giving booster shots directly to residents of long-term facilities at the time given. This population received vaccination during the early rollout of the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines. The disease remains to pose high risk to residents at long-term care facilities.

Furthermore, the public health and medical experts anticipate that those who received the Johnson & Johnson (J&J)vaccine will likely need COVID-19 booster shots. They are expecting additinal more data from the pharmaceutical company since the administration of the J&J vaccine began in March 2021. They will inform the public regarding the timely plan for the J&J COVID-19 booster shots once they receive those data from the pharmaceutical company.