WASHINGTON — Across the U.S. people are scheduling their booster shots, following authorization and approval from the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Verify viewer Renee from Bladensburg, Md., reached out to the Verify team after hearing that the Moderna booster would be a half-dose, at 50mcg, rather than the dosing of the original Moderna vaccines, at 100mcg.
"For those that got the J&J as their first dose and want to get the Moderna as their second dose, should they be getting a full dose or a half dose?" Renee said.
It's a question some people are asking on social media.
THE QUESTION:
If Johnson & Johnson vaccine recipients want a Moderna booster, should they get the half-dose or the full-dose?
THE SOURCES:
- Dr. William Schaffner, Professor of Medicine at Vanderbilt University
- Dr. Amesh Adalja, Infectious Disease Critical Care and Emergency Medicine Physician, Assistant Professor and Senior Scholar at Johns Hopkins University
THE ANSWER:
Our experts agreed, go with a half-dose, since that's the one that was approved as a booster.
WHAT WE FOUND:
Our Verify researchers spoke with two experts in infectious diseases, Dr. William Schaffner from Vanderbilt University, and Dr. Amesh Adalja from Johns Hopkins University.
They both agree the half dose is the way to go.
"If someone's gotten the J&J vaccine, I would get the half-dose Moderna, if that's the choice." Dr. Adalja said. "Mixing and matching seem to be something that's highly effective in terms of increasing the boost that you get from using a different type of vaccine. Vaccines using different technologies stimulate different parts of the immune system, and I think that's advantageous."
"I don't think that the side effects will be that much greater if you've got the Moderna full-dose vaccine, it's just that's not the one that's currently recommended as a booster," Dr. Schaffner said.
Both the FDA and CDC advisory committees voted in favor of a half-dose Moderna booster because it provided a high immune response, while also increasing worldwide supply.
So we can Verify, yes, if you’re opting for a Moderna booster following your J&J vaccine, stick with the 50 micrograms or "half-dose."
Remember, it’s a different situation for those who are immunocompromised; they are authorized to get an additional dose at the full 100 micrograms.