Pfizer, BioNTech say omicron partially evades its COVID vaccine but booster can restore protection

The COVID-19 vaccine produced by Pfizer and BioNTech, Comirnaty, provides less protection against the omicron variant than it did against wild-type COVID and other variants, the companies said on Wednesday. They also reported that a third (booster) shot is needed to gain protection against omicron comparable to that provided by the two-dose series against wild-type COVID-19 and other variants. The announcement from the companies came hours after the release of a study by scientists in South Africa that showed the omicron variant could largely evade the antibodies generated by the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. The lab study also indicated that booster shots would help restore some level of protection and that the original two-dose series was still likely to prevent a severe form of the disease.