Manufacturers Say Flu And COVID-19 Vaccines Can Be Seasonal Injections After Omicron Variants

Illustration of COVID-19 Vaccine. (Wikimedia Commons/Government Spokesperson)

JAKARTA - A COVID-19 vaccine will be around for the long term and could be part of the annual series of booster shots on offer, leading vaccine makers to predict.

COVID-19 mRNA vaccine manufacturers Moderna and Pfizer are each working on a new version of their vaccine, which is geared towards addressing the Omicron variant, the companies said.

Speaking at the World Economic Forum (WEF) on Monday, Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel said his company plans to offer seasonal booster shots, covering COVID-19 as well as other respiratory illnesses such as flu and respiratory viruses (RSV).

"Our goal is to be able to have one booster yearly, so we don't have adherence issues where people don't want to get two to three shots in winter, but they do get one dose where they get boosters for coronavirus, boosters for flu and RSV," explained Bancel quoting Euronews January 18.

When asked when the COVID-flu-RSV booster could be available, he replied "best-case scenario is fall 2023".

But, Bancel also suggested the issue of vaccine inequality could continue, saying about the 2023 introduction estimate for the combined booster.

"I don't think that's going to happen in every country," he said,

On the same occasion, Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla assessed that the current wave of Omicron variants could be the last, from the COVID-19 pandemic that requires restrictions on work and social life.

"The most likely scenario is, the virus will continue to circulate for several years. This is a virus that has spread all over the world and is very difficult to get rid of," he said.

"But I think with the tools that science has given us, this wave will be the last one to bring with it this kind of restriction," he said.

In his comments to French broadcaster BFMTV, Bourla echoed the opinion of Moderna Bancel bosses that the annual COVID-19 vaccination will be a fact of life for years to come.

"For me, what's important is to make three complete doses of vaccination, followed by an annual dose, except for people with immune systems who can receive a booster every four months," he said.