Heeding the advice of its expert advisory committee, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Thursday recommended the inclusion of an Omicron BA.4/5 spike protein component in modified COVID-19 vaccine boosters for the upcoming fall and winter seasons.   The recommendation follows a 19-2 vote in favor of adding an Omicron-specific component to future boosters by FDA’s Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC) earlier this week. (RELATED:...

Welcome to Regulatory Reconnaissance, your daily regulatory news and intelligence briefing.   In Focus: US FDA recommends inclusion of BA.4, BA.5 subvariants in COVID boosters ( Reuters ) As booster season awaits, US re-ups supply of Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine with new $3.2B deal ( Endpoints ) ( Reuters ) ( Fierce ) ( Bloomberg ) Pfizer asks for formal U.S. approval of oral COVID treatment Paxlovid ( Reuters ) Is It Time To Think Beyond mRNA For COVID Vaccines? FDA Ad...

Welcome to Regulatory Reconnaissance, your daily regulatory news and intelligence briefing.   In Focus: US FDA's VRBPAC votes in favor of adapting the Covid-19 vaccine to the latest Omicron variant ( Endpoints ) ( STAT ) ( Reuters ) ( The Pink Sheet ) FDA: Don’t rush a move to change the Covid-19 vaccine composition ( STAT ) BioNTech, Pfizer to start testing universal vaccine for coronaviruses ( Reuters ) US Health Officials Announce New Monkeypox Vaccination Plan ...

Welcome to Regulatory Reconnaissance, your daily regulatory news and intelligence briefing.   In Focus: US FDA panel to advise on whether — and how — Covid vaccines should be updated ( STAT ) ( NYTimes ) ( Endpoints ) ( Fierce ) Pfizer/BioNTech say Omicron-based COVID shots improve response vs that variant ( Reuters ) FDA places partial clinical hold on David Hung biotech after certain cancer patients experience eye inflammation ( Endpoints ) Astellas’ gene therapy...

Welcome to Regulatory Reconnaissance, your daily regulatory news and intelligence briefing.   In Focus: US Moderna booster candidate shows strong response against Omicron subvariants ( Reuters ) Moderna CEO: COVID variant vaccine to be ready for shipping in August ( Reuters ) Omicron-specific COVID vaccines on the horizon, Pfizer chief says ( Reuters ) More vulnerable people receiving fewer COVID pills - U.S. study ( Reuters ) FDA to Order Juul E-Cigarettes Off U....

Welcome to Regulatory Reconnaissance, your daily regulatory news and intelligence briefing.   In Focus: US COVID vaccine rollout for US children close after CDC panel vote ( Reuters ) Lawmakers ask GAO to probe pharmacy benefit managers over their role in drug pricing ( STAT ) Comparing the Pfizer and Moderna Covid vaccines for young children ( STAT ) Merck Explores Purchase of Biotech Seagen ( WSJ ) FDA advisors mostly agree that Acadia’s Nuplazid isn't effective...

On Wednesday, the US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC) voted in favor of amending FDA’s emergency use authorization (EUA) for Moderna’s two-dose vaccine to include children 6 months through 5 years of age. The committee voted separately in favor of recommending to amend Pfizer’s EUA for its vaccine and authorize use of a three-dose vaccine for children 6 months through 4 years of age.   In a 21-0 v...

The US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC) voted unanimously to recommend Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine as a two-dose series for emergency use authorization (EUA) in children 6 years and older.   The committee met on Tuesday to discuss Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine EUA request to include children and adolescents 6 years through 17 years of age. Moderna sought an EUA for a two-dose primary series for adoles...

Manufacturers of COVID-19 vaccines currently authorized for emergency use did not undergo facility inspections before their vaccines were authorized by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), said the General Accounting Office (GAO) in a new report. However, most facilities had been inspected at least once previously in past 10 years, and the agency relied on a variety of other information sources including record reviews and on-site reviews.   The examination of th...

The first US emergency use authorization (EUA) for younger children to receive a COVID-19 vaccine has been issued, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced Friday afternoon.   The mRNA vaccine developed by Pfizer in conjunction with the German firm BioNTech is now authorized for use in children aged 5-11 years. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will convene a meeting of its immunization advisory committee next week to review clinical param...

Younger school-aged children in the US came a step closer on Tuesday to having a COVID-19 vaccine available, with a positive vote from the US Food and Drug Administration's (FDA's) vaccines advisory committee for a reduced dose of Pfizer’s mRNA vaccine.   The vote was near-unanimous, with just one abstention and no “nays” among the 18 voting members of FDA’s Vaccines and Related Biological Products advisory committee (VRBPAC). Overall, the committee judged that the ben...

The European Commission (EC) on 22 October released a list of the 10 “most promising treatments” for COVID-19 as part of its strategy to support the development of new therapies.   A panel of scientific experts selected the 10 drugs from a pool of 82 therapeutic candidates that are in late-stage clinical development.    “In selecting the 10 most promising candidates, experts focused on the product categories with the highest potential impact on the pandemic: produc...