LONDON — British health authorities have authorized an updated version of Moderna’s coronavirus vaccine that aims to protect against the original virus and the omicron variant. In a statement on Monday, the Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Agency said it had given the green light to Moderna’s combination “bivalent” vaccine, which will be used as an adult booster shot.
Each dose of the booster shot will target both the original COVID-19 virus that was first detected in late 2019 and the omicron BA.1 variant that was first seen in November. British regulators said the side effects were similar to those seen for Moderna’s original booster shot and were typically “mild and self-resolving.”
“What this (combination) vaccine gives us is a sharpened tool in our armoury to help protect us against this disease as the virus continues to evolve,” said Dr June Raine, the head of Britain’s health care and medicines regulator.