CDC urges kids ages 16-17 to get newly cleared boosters; your 3rd shot unlikely to be your last

With the new omicron variant of the coronavirus spreading in the U.S., federal authorities are giving booster shots for 16- and 17-year-olds a strong endorsement.

Hours after the Food and Drug Administration on Thursday authorized the extra doses of Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine for adolescents in that age group, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended that those teens get the added protection as soon as they're six months past their initial shots.

“Today, CDC is strengthening its booster recommendations and encouraging everyone 16 and older to receive a booster shot,'' the agency's website says. "Although we don’t have all the answers on the Omicron variant, initial data suggests that COVID-19 boosters help broaden and strengthen the protection against Omicron and other variants.''

The third dose is identical to the other two. Booster doses are already encouraged for people over 18 who had their previous Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccines at least six months earlier, or the Johnson & Johnson shot at least two months prior. The U.S. government has pre-purchased enough doses to provide boosters free of charge to anyone who qualifies.