Pfizer CEO Says People Needing COVID-19 Vaccines Every Year Is The 'Most Likely Scenario'

Pfizer Inc PFE CEO Albert Bourla said that there is a likelihood that annual booster shots of the coronavirus vaccine will be needed.

What Happened: Bourla said in an interview with ABC’s “This Week” program that the COVID-19 vaccine could morph into an annual shot. 

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“The most likely scenario for me is that, because the virus is spread all over the world, that it will continue seeing new variants that are coming out,” he said.

“Also we will have vaccines that they will last at least a year, and I think the most likely scenario is annual vaccination, but we don’t know really, we need to wait and see the data,” Bourla said.

The Pfizer CEO anticipates that "we will be able to come back to normal life” within a year.

Why It Matters: The Pfizer vaccine booster shot was approved by FDA for high-risk individuals, and for those aged 65 years and above last week.

See Also: EMA To Decide On Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 Booster Next Month: Reuters

Bourla’s comment that normal life could return within a year came with a caveat on emerging variants of COVID-19 and the need for continuing vaccination.

“I don’t think that this means that the variants will not continue coming, and I don’t think that this means that we should be able to live our lives without having vaccinations,” he said.

Bourla’s timeline for the end of the pandemic is similar to that proposed by Moderna Inc MRNA CEO Stéphane Bancel.

Bancel said he expected things to return to normal a year from now when asked by the Swiss newspaper Neue Zuercher Zeitung on an estimated return to normal life, as per a Reuters report.

Pfizer CEO said in the interview, the company was going to submit data on a children’s COVID-19 vaccine in a matter of “days,” not “weeks.”

Pfizer’s vaccine is made in partnership with the German firm BioNTech SE BNTX. 
Price Action: On Friday, Pfizer shares closed nearly 0.6% lower at $43.94 in regular trading. On the same day, BioNTech shares closed nearly 5.5% lower in the regular session at $333.48 and rose almost 0.6% higher to $333.50 in the after-hours trading.

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