‘More efffective’ Omicron booster jab being assessed by TGA

Moderna’s new Omicron-specific Covid booster vaccine is 1.69 times more effective than existing boosters. Here’s what you need to know.

Moderna’s new Omicron specific Covid booster vaccine is 1.69 times more effective against the new BA.4 and BA.5 variants sweeping the nation than existing boosters, new research shows.

Pharmaceutical company Moderna has released clinical trial results showing its new bivalent booster which combines the original Wuhan variant of the virus that causes Covid along with the original Omicron variant “continues to demonstrate better performance than the current booster”.

“This superior breadth and durability of immune response following a bivalent booster has now been shown in multiple Phase 2/3 studies involving thousands of participants,” said Stephane Bancel, chief executive officer of Moderna.

One month after administration the new vaccine produced significantly higher antibodies against BA.4 and BA5 than the existing booster.

Australia is set to be one of the first countries in the world to get access to the Omicron booster jab.

Moderna’s new Covid vaccine, designed to fight the original Wuhan strain of the virus as well as the Omicron variant, is currently being assessed by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA).

“If approved, the company will be able to supply this new Omicron-containing bivalent booster vaccine within weeks- putting Australia among the first countries in the world to have access to this new COVID-19 vaccine,” Moderna’s managing director in Australia Michael Azrak told News Corp.

Michael Azrak, Moderna’s managing director in Australia. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Andrew Henshaw

Health Minister Mark Butler told News Corp he wanted to be on “the front foot” in accessing the most up to date vaccines.

“I’ve had encouraging discussions with Moderna and Pfizer about the challenges of the new sub-variants and the positive developments in vaccine technology,” Mr Butler said.

“My department is in negotiations about future supply arrangements, including for under 5-year-olds and the variant vaccines,” he said.

Epidemiologists and other experts have been calling for more Australians to get a fourth jab as hospitals and health services buckle under massive pressure from both Covid and the flu.

An additional 7.4 million people are now be eligible to receive a fourth COVID-19 vaccine dose after the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI) updated its recommendations last week.

The Australian Government accepted the recommendations of the ATAGI vaccine experts and opened the fourth dose to those newly eligible on Monday, July 11.

ATAGI specifically recommended that people aged 50 to 64 years should have their fourth dose, while people aged 30 to 49 years may choose to have a fourth shot.

The existing Covid vaccines were designed to work against the original Wuhan variant.

A fourth dose of these vaccines has been shown in Israel to provide a 10-30 per cent increase in resistance to infection but this protection wanes within five to eight weeks.

However, this could be enough to get Australia through the worst of the winter outbreak.

But there is concern about whether the original jab provides much protection against the new BA. 4 and BA. 5 variants sweeping the nation.

These variants appear resistant to the existing vaccine and the antibodies produced by people who were infected with the original Omicron variant.

Health Minister Mark Butler. Picture: Tim Hunter.

Mr Butler has appointed former Health Department chief Jane Halton to review Australia’s vaccine purchasing arrangements. She is expected to report within weeks.

Moderna said it “continues to have constructive discussions with the Australian Government regarding the supply of Moderna’s next generation Omicron containing bivalent vaccine booster for people 18 years and older”.

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Originally published as ‘More efffective’ Omicron booster jab being assessed by TGA