Good morning. Welcome to Axios today. It's Friday, November 19th. I'm Nyla Budu. Here's

what you need to know today. President Biden meets with his North American counterparts,

plus the growing global reach of Mexican food. For first, today's one big thing, the latest

on COVID booster shots. We're hearing so much about boosters, who's

eligible, what shot you can get. The FDA is likely to sign off shortly on the Pfizer

booster shot for all adults, 18 and older. But many cities and states like New York City

and California have already made boosters available to all adults.

Namanjay Bumpus is the director of the Department of Pharmacology and Molecular Sciences at

Johns Hopkins Medicine. And she's joining us now from Baltimore with some more answers

on boosters. Welcome, Dr. Bumpus. Hello. Thank you for having me.

Can we start by just explaining who's eligible to get a booster right now?

Yes. Currently, if you receive the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, initially, you're eligible

for a booster. If you're 65 years or older, age 18, living in a long-term care setting

or with certain underlying medical conditions, such as diabetes, chronic kidney disease,

or also over 18 working in a high risk setting, if you have received the Johnson and Johnson

vaccine and you're over 18 years older, you're eligible for a vaccine and anyone who's

received the Johnson and Johnson vaccine at least two months ago, basically.

But this could soon change, correct? Yes. So the Pfizer vaccine could soon become available

to all adults and that may be coming down the line also for the other vaccines as well.

But there are places where it has already been broadened and extended to all.

Do we have data on what provides the best protection for your third shot, especially

if you're thinking about mixing and matching? We do not. So the studies so far are small.

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