FDA: COVID-19 vaccines can be prescribed as boosters if granted full approval

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Tuesday said COVID-19 vaccines can be prescribed by doctors as booster doses if they have been granted full approval.

“Once a product has full approval, it can be prescribed and used by the doctor as they see fit,” FDA chief Eric Domingo told GMA News Online in a text message when asked whether a COVID-19 vaccine could be prescribed as a booster dose.

Domingo earlier said COVID-19 vaccines could become commercially available in the Philippines by early 2022. 

Last week, the US FDA granted full approval to the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, making it the first COVID-19 shot to receive such approval. 

Domingo explained that COVID-19 vaccine manufacturers would need to submit an application for a certificate of product registration to gain full approval in the Philippines. 

Full approval would mean that a COVID-19 vaccine can be sold not just to the government but also to hospitals, clinics, and pharmacies.

The Philippines has fully vaccinated over 13.7 million individuals as of August 29, still far from its target of inoculating over 70 million people. 

The Department of Health, meanwhile, still does not recommend getting a booster dose due to incomplete evidence.  — BM, GMA News