Beautiful Virgin Islands

Thursday, Nov 06, 2025

Scientist who helped develop Pfizer-BioNTech Covid vaccine agrees third shot is needed as immunity wanes

Scientist who helped develop Pfizer-BioNTech Covid vaccine agrees third shot is needed as immunity wanes

The chief medical officer of BioNTech told CNBC that people will likely need a third shot of its two-dose Covid-19 vaccine as immunity against the virus wanes.


The chief medical officer of BioNTech told CNBC on Wednesday that people will likely need a third shot of its two-dose Covid-19 vaccine as immunity against the virus wanes, agreeing with previous comments made by Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla.

Dr. Ozlem Tureci, co-founder and CMO of BioNTech, which developed a Covid vaccine with Pfizer, said she also expects people will need to get vaccinated against the coronavirus annually, like for the seasonal flu. That’s because, she said, scientists expect vaccine-induced immunity against the virus will decrease over time.

“We see indications for this also in the induced, but also the natural immune response against SARS-COV-2,” she said during an interview with CNBC’s Kelly Evans on “The Exchange.” “We see this waning of immune responses also in people who were just infected and therefore [it’s] also expected with the vaccines.”

Tureci’s comments come after Bourla said in an interview that aired April 15 that people will likely need a booster shot, or third dose, of the Covid-19 vaccine within 12 months of getting fully vaccinated. He also said it’s possible people will need to get additional shots each year.

Pfizer said earlier this month that its Covid-19 vaccine was more than 91% effective at protecting against the virus and more than 95% effective against severe disease up to six months after the second dose. Moderna’s vaccine, which uses technology similar to Pfizer’s, was also shown to remain highly effective at six months.

Researchers say they still don’t know how long protection against the virus lasts after six months of being fully vaccinated, though public health officials and health experts expect protection to wane after some time.

Should Americans require booster shots, the U.S. government would likely need to make arrangements with the drugmakers to supply additional doses and make plans for vaccine distribution.

On Friday, Andy Slavitt, senior advisor to President Joe Biden’s Covid response team, said the White House is preparing for the potential need for Covid-19 vaccine booster shots. He said the Biden administration has thought about the need to secure additional doses.

“I can assure you that when we do our planning, when the president orders purchases of additional vaccines as he has done and when we focus on all the production expansion opportunities that we talk about in here we very much have scenarios like that in mind,” he said at a White House press briefing.

Last week, the Biden administration’s Covid response chief science officer, David Kessler, said Americans should expect to receive booster shots to protect against coronavirus variants. He told U.S. lawmakers that currently authorized vaccines are highly protective but noted new variants could “challenge” the effectiveness of the shots.

“We don’t know everything at this moment,” he told the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis.

“We are studying the durability of the antibody response,” he said. “It seems strong, but there is some waning of that, and no doubt the variants challenge ... they make these vaccines work harder. So I think for planning purposes, planning purposes only, I think we should expect that we may have to boost.”

Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel told CNBC last week that the company hopes to have a booster shot for its two-dose vaccine available in the fall.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
UK Pre-Budget Blues and Rate-Cut Concerns Pile Pressure on Pound
ITV Warns of Nine-Per-Cent Drop in Q4 Advertising Revenue Amid Budget Uncertainty
National Grid Posts Slightly Stronger-Than-Expected Half-Year Profit as Regulatory Investments Drive Growth
UK Business Lobby Urges Reeves to Break Tax Pledges and Build Fiscal Headroom
UK to Launch Consultation on Stablecoin Regulation on November 10
UK Savers Rush to Withdraw Pension Cash Ahead of Budget Amid Tax-Change Fears
Massive Spoilers Emerge from MAFS UK 2025: Couple Swaps, Dating App Leaks and Reunion Bombshells
Kurdish-led Crime Network Operates UK Mini-Marts to Exploit Migrants and Sell Illicit Goods
UK Income Tax Hike Could Trigger £1 Billion Cut to Scotland’s Budget, Warns Finance Secretary
Tommy Robinson Acquitted of Terror-related Charge After Phone PIN Dispute
Boris Johnson Condemns Western Support for Hamas at Jewish Community Conference
HII Welcomes UK’s Westley Group to Strengthen AUKUS Submarine Supply Chain
Tragedy in Serbia: Coach Mladen Žižović Collapses During Match and Dies at 44
Diplo Says He Dated Katy Perry — and Justin Trudeau
Dick Cheney, Former U.S. Vice President, Dies at 84
Trump Calls Title Removal of Andrew ‘Tragic Situation’ Amid Royal Fallout
UK Bonds Rally as Chancellor Reeves Briefs Markets Ahead of November Budget
UK Report Backs Generational Smoking Ban Ahead of Tobacco & Vapes Bill Review
UK’s Domino’s Pizza Group Reports Modest Like-for-Like Sales Growth in Q3
UK Supplies Additional Storm Shadow Missiles to Ukraine as Trump Alleges Russian Underground Nuclear Tests
High-Profile Broodmare Puca Sells for Five Million Dollars at Fasig-Tipton ‘Night of the Stars’
Wilt Chamberlain’s One-of-a-Kind ‘Searcher 1’ Supercar Heads to Auction
Erling Haaland’s Remarkable Run: 13 Premier League Goals in 10 Matches and Eyes on History
UK Labour Peer Warns of Emerging ‘Constituency for Hating Jews’ in Britain
UK Home Secretary Admits Loss of Border Control, Warns Public Trust at Risk
President Trump Expresses Sympathy for UK Royal Family After Title Stripping of Prince Andrew
Former Prince Andrew to Lose His Last Military Title as King Charles Moves to End His Public Role
King Charles Relocates Andrew to Sandringham Estate and Strips Titles Amid Epstein Fallout
Two Arrested After Mass Stabbing on UK Train Leaves Ten Hospitalised
Glamour UK Says ‘Stay Mad Jo x’ After Really Big Rowling Backlash
Former Prince Prince Andrew Faces Possible U.S. Congressional Appearance Over Jeffrey Epstein Inquiry
UK Faces £20 Billion Productivity Shortfall as Brexit’s Impact Deepens
UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves Eyes New Council-Tax Bands for High-Value Homes
UK Braces for Major Storm with Snow, Heavy Rain and Winds as High as 769 Miles Wide
U.S. Secures Key Southeast Asia Agreements to Reshape Rare Earth Supply Chains
US and China Agree One-Year Trade Truce After Trump-Xi Talks
BYD Profit Falls 33 % as Chinese EV Maker Doubles Down on Overseas Markets
US Philanthropists Shift Hundreds of Millions to UK to Evade Regulatory Uncertainty in Trump Era
Israeli Energy Minister Delays $35 Billion Gas Export Agreement with Egypt
King Charles Strips Prince Andrew of Titles and Royal Residence
Trump–Putin Budapest Summit Cancelled After Moscow Memo Raises Conditions for Ukraine Talks
Amazon Shares Soar 11% as Cloud Business Hits Fastest Growth Since 2022
Credit Markets Flooded with More Than $200 Billion of AI-Linked Debt Issuance
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent Says China Made 'a Real Mistake' by Threatening Rare-Earth Exports
Report Claims Nearly Two Billion Dollars in Foreign Charity Funds Flowed into U.S. Advocacy Groups
White House Refutes Reports That US Targeting Military Sites in Venezuela
Meta Seeks Dismissal of Strike 3’s $350 Million Copyright Lawsuit
Apple Exceeds Forecasts With $102.5 Billion Q3 Revenue Despite iPhone Miss
Israel's IDF Major General Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi Admits to Act Amounting to Aiding Hamas During Wartime (Treason)
Shawbrook IPO Marks London’s Biggest UK Listing in Two Years
×