Will Covid-19 vaccines become an annual shot?

Experts believe an annual Covid-19 vaccination would be preferable to more frequent booster shots to fight the pandemic.

This week, former US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) commissioner and Pfizer board member Dr Scott Gottlieb said he thinks Covid-19 vaccines may become an annual shot.

Speaking on CBS, Gottlieb said annual vaccination should be considered for the foreseeable future.

“I think it’s heading towards the vaccine becoming an annual shot. At least for the foreseeable future, until we really understand the epidemiology of this disease and understand whether the coronavirus starts to recede into the background, like the four circulating strains of the coronavirus we’ve become accustomed to” said Gottlieb. 

Earlier this year, Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said one annual shot would be better than frequent boosters to fight the Omicron variant and future variants.

Bourla said booster shots administered every four to five months was not a “good scenario”. 

“What I’m hoping is that we will have a vaccination you will have once a year. That is easier to convince people to do. It is easier for people to remember.

“From a public health perspective, it is an ideal situation. We are looking to see if we can create a vaccine that covers Omicron and doesn’t forget the other variants and that could be a solution.”

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