pfizer is right? >> you know, for those of us that are making vaccines for a long time, it is not unusual for immune responses after vaccination to wayne over time. what is the crucial point, though and which we don't know the answer to right now is even though that immunity wanes over time, does it remain above a level which we need to protect people and again, i would kind of focus people on the point here the public health burden of covid is severe disease, hospitalization and death. even though these vaccine immune responses wayne over time, they are very, very effective at preventing those three outcomes. >> so dr. thomas, i want to ask you something because obviously the mrna technology is new, right? in part because of investments by the gate foundation, it's accelerated. there is no way we would have had this if it weren't for things like that. if you look at this and where we are and the possibility of needing more boosters, is it the vaccine or variant. is it possibly this mnra technology wi

pfizer pointed to israeli data. it's strange they pointed to israeli data it's proof you might need a third shot. let's look at the israeli data. israeli data released by the ministry of health with little explanation, two shots of pfizer rather are 64% effective preventing infection and 93% effective at preventing severe disease and hospitalization. jim, just days ago you and i were talking about how the second number is the important number, it's 93% effective even with all that did delta variant out there, it is 93% effective at preventing hospitalization. why are we messing with this? it is unclear. why are we messing with this, why do we need to? and also it sends a funny message when a third of americans have chosen not to get the first two shots. >> true. i mean, because they don't seem to be reading the data that this is highly, highly -- you made the point the other day and this is in the data, more than 99% of the people who unfortunately died from covid are unvaccinated. >> exactly. >> can't be clearer. e

so let's take it from what pfizer has to say. pfizer didn't cite any new data or any particular study to show that there's waning immunity. instead, they pointed to just some new israeli data that's not been published in a study, that has not been fully explained, but let's take a look at that israeli data. a few days ago, the israeli ministry of health came out with data saying that the pfizer vaccine is now just 64% effective at preventing infection. that's lower than previously, but -- and this is the really important number -- it's 93% effective at preventing severe disease and hospitalization. this is off of recent data. it is unclear why pfizer thinks that this means that there's waning immunity since 93% is actually a very, very powerful vaccine. so the u.s. food and drug administration then put out a joint statement, which hardly ever happens, saying, no, you don't need boosters right now. let's take a look at their wording because it was so clear and so direct. they said, americans who have been fully vaccinated do not n

but according to pfizer, didn't the head of pfizer, when a long time ago say that ultimately people would probably need to get another shot, you know, six to ten months after their final shot? >> yeah, anderson, let me break it down like this, and maybe it will clarify things. i've been saying for most of this year that eventually we'll likely need a third immunization of the biontech and pfizer vaccine, in other words, a booster. the reason for that is it will really jack up virus neutrali neutralizing anti-bodies. remember, as good a job as we're doing in the u.s. we're doing a non-job in africa and south america and southeast asia. we're extremely vulnerable to lots of variants coming in. a third immunization at some point maybe in the fall or next year would be likely needed to provide greater resistance to the variants. point two, it looks like the two doses of the current vaccine are pretty robust against the delta variant. you cite that 64% number in israel, but in terms of severe illness, it's well over 90%. and, by the way, in the uk and scotland and in canada, there are now thre

pfizer claims to have data that shows we need community. us in the scientific community have not seen that data. i do not blame them for going toward approval for a third dose. we will probably needed some point, but today is not the day. do not go lining up at your local drugstore to get a third shot today. see this as anticating for pfizer a third shot possibly being needed. laura: pfizer are arguing the vaccine has eroded over time but they are not sharing the data, so the public could suspect pfizer wants to make even more money off the ug. >> it is certainly possible. every pharmaceutical company has a profit motive. on the other hand, it would not be beyond the pale to think we have waning immunity over time. pfizer has only reported about neutralizing anti-bodies, which are an important part of the immune response, but not the entire response. the other part, what we really care about is whether or not you're getting infected or severely symptomatic, needing to be hospitalized, or god forbid, dying from covid after the two shots of t

did pfizer get out ahead of the data, out ahead of the government? but the president tom line here, could it one day be needed? israel tonight moving forward with that booster. and the delta variant spreading quickly here in the u.s. in regions where there are high numbers of unvaccinated americans. cases on the rise. in the u.s. now, up 51% in a month. more than 17,000 new cases a day. >>> also tonight, we're monit monitoring the potential for storms as we come on the air tonight. philadelphia, new york all in the path. and in the west at this hour, the record heat wave. the third heat wave already this summer. the fires in california and oregon exploding. swirling flames forcing firefighters to run to their trucks for shelter. ginger zee standing by on all of this. >>> the battle in this country over voting rights. tonight in texas, one of the states trying to enact strict new voting laws, democratic lawmakers are now leaving the state to avoid the vote, all in their effort to protect voting access in texas. rachel scott tonight on what this could

so let's take it from what pfizer has to say. pfizer didn't cite new data or any particular study to show that there is waning immunity. instead they pointed to just some new israeli data not published in the study, that has not been fully explained. but let's look at the israeli data. a few days ago the israeli ministry of health came out with data saying the pfizer vaccine is now just 64% effective at preventing infection, lower than previously. but in -- and this ises the important number. it's 94o 3% effective at preventing severe disease and hospitalization. off of recent data. it's unclear why pfizer thinks this mean there is waning immunity since 93% is a very powerful vaccine. the u.s. food and drug administration put out a joint statement which hardly happens, saying, no, you don't need boosters right now. let's look at the wording because it was so clear and direct. they said americans fully vaccinated do not need a booster shot at this time. and it's not just the fda and cdc. experts are telling us also you don't need

pfizer says oh, immunity is waning. we think people need the booster. the fda, cdc and every expert we talked to say this isn't true. late yesterday pfizer very unexpectedly said we're asking the fda for emergency use authorization. we intend to ask next month, which is soon. we think immunity is waning to just two shots. they were almost in some ways denigrating their own product. they put out a statement. they didn't say based on a new study. they pointed to some israeli data put out. it's based on a relatively small number of cases. it's not been published. nobody is sure of the science behind it. the israeli minister of health saying the two shots are 64% effective against infection and 93% effective against severe illness. 93% against protecting you against severe illness. how does that produce waning immunity? nobody is sure. the cdc and fda stepped in and said jointly, americans who have been fully vaccinated do not need a booster shot at this time. again, that is the bottom line. what you see on the screen there, do not need a third booster. tha

doctor, pfizer claims its booster shot will bolster immunity. the federal government says boosters aren't necessary now. can you please help us clear up this confusion? >> right now the science and evidence says that two shots of the pfizer or moderna vaccine is more than good enough to protect you against all the variants out there including the delta variant. so until we see better data that says a third shot is necessary, i remain very comfortable saying we should stick with the two- shot regimen and see where things unfold. >> garrett: does the spread of delta variant that we keep reading about accelerate the timeline? >> the delta variant is by far the most contagious variant we've seen. definitely important everybody get the two shots. if we start seeing data that says the vaccines are not holding up as well as they did initially, i think that's probably the motivation at that point to think about a booster shot. i would say talk of boosters is premature. >> garrett: if infections reach a certain level should vaccinated individuals become

again, lots of criticism of pfizer this morning. they did point to some israeli day that came out earlier this week. that data shows the vaccine works great at preventing severe disease. in the midst of all this, the fda and cdc put out a joint statement which i will tell you having done this many decades, hardly ever happens. americans who have been fully vaccinated do not need a booster shot at this time. it couldn't be more clear. it also in some ways kind of disagrees with what pfizer is saying for the fda so come out and say something that disagrees with the pharmaceutical company, that also is extraordinarily rare. this is an odd situation. the bottom line if you don't want to follow all the back and forth of this mess, the bottom line is people do not need a booster. there is one exception if you're immune compromised. for example, you're an organ transplant recipient and taking immune suppression drugs. a third shot might help you. there are studies on this now. for the vast majority of people, there's no reason to be gettin

. >>> pfizer plans to seek fda authorization for a covid-19 booster shot but federal health officials don't think it's necessary. this dose will be six months to a year after people get a second shot. pfizer says this will better protect people from the delta variant which is the dominant strain in the combrous right now. the cdc and fda have issued a statement saying americans who have been fully vaccinated do not need a booster at this time. >>> the city of santa rosa is responding to an outbreak of the delta variant at a homeless shelter. 27 peep m tested positive. 43 test results are are still pending this morning. res dependents who are positive are being quarantined at a neighboring shelter an ex. most of the people who tested positive were not vaccinated. >>> president biden will sign an executive order that will encourage competition in key sectors of the economy. new regulations are expected impacting everything from airline luggage fees to noncompete clauses. this will take months to implement. the biden administration is looking at monopolized industries and the lack of com

so kathy, bottom line, how soon could be expect pfizer's third dose >> well, kate, pfizer plans on asking for emergency use authorization next months. meanwhile, health officials are reviewing the data and plan on updating the public with any new information. kate >> kathy, thank you. >>> now to the relentless dangerous heat once again baking the western u.s. it's a double disaster with wildfires prompting evacuations and reservoirs now running out of water erin mclaughlin has more >> tonight, extreme temperatures fueling infernoes across the west in california, more than twice as many acres have burned compared to the same time last year triggering evacuations in the northern part of the state the back woods complex fire this weekend doubling in size photographer craig captured the intense conditions as a small town burned. >> it's just weeks and weeks and weeks drier than it should be this time of year. >> the fire season not only prematurely ferocious but also deadly in arizona, retired fire chief jeff patura and pilot matthew miller were killed in an air accident the scorching tempera

the booster debate, pfizer meeting with top u.s. health officials today about a third shot as new cases surge among the unvaccinated. historic protests. thousands of cubans take to the streets in the largest demonstration against the communist government in decades. president biden just now weighing in. >>> and scorching temperatures out west, shattering even more records as wildfires threaten a critical power grid. thanks for being here. we begin with an important meeting today between pfizer and federal health officials on a potential coronavirus booster. drugmaker announced plans to seek approval for a third dose amid concerns of waning immunity. that prompted almost immediate pushback from the cdc and the fda saying vaccinated americans do not need a booster right now. this caused understandable confusion. just as for the first time in a long time, the united states is again seeing an alarming increase in covid cases. just take a look at this map. 36 states seeing cases up more than 10% in the last week. but look, states in the

. >>> pfizer is seeking authorization for a third is a money grab. >> double digit temperatures, hotter weekend is coming. >> building a better bay area, moving forward, finding solutions. this is abc 7 news. >>> the deck started shaking and rolling. >> residents in central and northern california. bracing themes and hoping for no more shaking tonight after a magnitude 6 quake and dozens of aftershocks this afternoon. >> it was a earthquake. >> how do you know? >> the tires went a little funny. >> some felt it here in the bay area. we brought you continuous live coverage. >> my mom who lives near the marina in san francisco she did feel it. she said it was about three seconds. >> reporter: the cluster of quakes leaving many uneasy tonight. >> i think a lot of people are still shaken from unpredictableness of the environment. >> it is dramatic with that we say good evening. it hit just before 4:00 and felt in california and across the nevada border. it was south of lake tahoe, and since then, 80 aftershocks, abc 7 news reporter highlights the quake's aftermath. >> reporter: from aggressi

booster shot, which we should note pfizer will make an enormous amount of money on. health and human services says it's going to decide with the cdc when we get the booster shot. pretty unprecedented to see that squabble like that. >> exactly. public health recommendations are not made by a company but by public health. that's where they're coming down to. i think there are three reasons why we probably don't need it right now. right now, with the data rehave we don't really need it. >> what happens if the cdc and fda say you don't need it but people say they want to get it. can they get it? would insurance pay for something like that? >> i think what you're coming down to is insurance may not pay for it if it's not a public health recommendation. it wouldn't stop anyone from getting a third shot. we don't think it's going to be harmful, necessarily. we don't know for sure it's not harmful in everyone. but the data, probably three reasons i'm thinking about why we don't need it. the first is, looking at the circulating anti-bodies in the blood isn't necessarily an in

what pfizer is now revealing about how long its vaccine will last. the cdc already issuing a response. >>> new overnight, what we have learned about the american arrested in connection with the assassination of haiti's president and the charity the suspect set up in florida. >>> and new research on your morning coffee. the best time to drink it for b. >>> and later, history at the national spelling bee. the inspiring new champion who at 14 already owns three world records for her other remarkable talents. >>> good friday morning, everyone. i'm zohreen shah. mona is off. >> i'm andrew dymburt. we begin with extreme weather from coast to coast. here in the northeast tropical storm elsa is hitting the busy i-95 corridor just in time for the morning commute and only hours after another storm triggered extreme flooding in new york city unleashing waist high water in underground subway stations and forcing some drivers to abandon their cars on the highway. >>> in the west this morning, the opposite problem, no rain. the historic drought is now expanding. o

the message should be that pfizer's doing this. so it's available in case we do need to do in the future. >> studies are underway for if and when a booster may be needed. the bigger concern is getting more americans fully vaccinated. french researchers found a single dose of pfizer's two-shot regimen is not enough protection against the delta variant doctor swartzberg says data shows about 10% of people who received the first dose of the vaccine are not returning for the second those people are putting themselves at substantial risk, getting really sick from the delta variant. perhaps one of the up in the hospital and perhaps something even more serious reporting in san francisco. dan thorn kron 4 news. >> in the east in alameda county. they're experiencing an increase in covid cases that could exceed spring waves we saw earlier this year. the alameda county health department says that the latest increases are likely to do the reopening of various activities businesses, people not wearing masks health nicholas moss believes that th

will people who haven't taken the pfizer vaccine, should they be able to get the pfizer booster? if they've taken an astrazeneca or johnson & johnson or whatever it may be? >> there's no reason to believe that you have to stick somehow with one vaccine. in fact there are good scientific reasons for why mixing vaccines may actually boost your immune response. so i definitely think for people who got astrazeneca or johnson & johnson, which is the adenovirus vector vaccine, if they were to need a booster, that having a pfizer or moderna, an mrna booster, may actually be helpful. >> dr. leana wen, appreciate it. thank you very much. >>> today missouri governor mike parson called the surge in his state, quote, totally misleading. miguel marquez is in one of those spots we referred to earlier in missouri and has details of the difficulties of the fight against the virus there. >> reporter: louis michael and patty bunch held off getting vaccinated. not anti-vaxxers. it just wasn't a priority. then they got sick. >> how sick did you two get? >> umm, i remember i was working, and then it

pfizer now says a booster shot of its current vaccine strongly extends protection against the virus. they're also developing a booster intended to target the rapidly spreading delta variant, now the dominant strain here in the u.s pfizer reports a third dose would likely be needed between six months and a year after you're fully vaccinated, the fda still to weigh in. miguel almaguer has the breaking details >> reporter: tonight pfizer says a booster shot, a third dose of its current vaccine, could offer americans five to ten times more protection against covid, given six months after the second dose pfizer believes those inoculated would be highly protected against the delta variant, which is now exploding across the u.s. the company expects to deliver new data to the fda within weeks and is also working to develop a delta specific version of its vaccine. it comes as new covid cases and hospitalizations both climb at a dangerous pace some hospitals are now in the middle of their most dire days >> the competition for beds is higher now than it was during the peak last year >> reporter

on the show, pfizer and biotech, a 3rd shot of their corporate vaccine could help with work better. news comes as infection. raids are on the rise again. and 40 goes for them. industry is upset because of what it feels are confusing messages. the taurus from the german government over on berlin. welcome to the program. global tax justice has a number, at least according to political leaders. that number being 15 percent. that's what the o. e c d countries agreed on a week ago and now g 20 finance ministers in venice want to push ahead with the global tax and for the goal is more tax justice. and in addition to the minimum tax rate of 15 percent, it also includes ensuring that international corporations no longer just pay taxes at the headquarters, but also where they generate their sales, global tax reform. it's mainly about tech companies which often make money all around, but are able to pay taxes only where the rates are low. what would countries collect in additional taxes of only the 5 largest tech companies? google, the parent company, alphabet amazon, apple. facebook and microsoft

. >>> pfizer is seeking authorization for a third shot. why some think it is a money grab. >> double digit temperatures, hotter weekend is coming. >> building a better bay area, moving forward, finding solutions. this is abc 7 news. >>> the deck started shaking and rolling. >> residents in central and northern california. bracing themes and hoping for no more shaking tonight after a magnitude 6 quake and dozens of aftershocks this afternoon. >> it was a earthquake. >> how do you know? >> the tires went a little funny. >> some felt it here in the bay area. we brought you continuous live coverage. >> my mom who lives near the marina in san francisco she did feel it. she said it was about three seconds. >> reporter: the cluster of quakes leaving many uneasy tonight. >> i think a lot of people are still shaken from unpredictableness of the environment. >> it is dramatic with that we say good evening. it hit just before 4:00 and felt in california and across the nevada border. it was south of lake tahoe, and since then, 80 aftershocks, abc 7 ne

pfizer will virtually brief u.s. government officials tomorrow on the potential need for booster shots. a company spokesperson told cnn the meeting is seen as a courtesy and federal guidance on boosters is not expected to immediately change. pfizer said last week that it's seeing waning immunity and would seek emergency use authorization to offer third doses. then the fda and cdc pushed back almost immediately saying there is no evidence boosters are needed yet. further complicating this conversation, israel announcing today it's immediately offering a third dose of the pfizer vaccine for immuno compromised people. >>> joining us is former white house senior adviser for covid response, andy slavitt. we have a lot to discuss. i laid out some of that right there. the delta variant keeps on spreading in the u.s. and around the world. we'll take a quick break. stay with us. we'll be right back. . and mine's unlisted. try boost® high protein with 20 grams of protein for muscle health. versus 16 grams in ensure high prote

that's what pfizer is now saying. how quickly do you think pfizer could make that happen considering the issues we saw with the initial vaccine rollout? >> well, i mean, our problem at the moment is not can pfizer produce vaccine? we can produce vaccine. the problem is will americans take it? as you noted, only 48% of americans are fully vaccinated. we have made it easily accessible. we have made it free. we tried to persuade people. we now had the president bleeding with people. it is hard to see how much more can be done to get people to take the vaccine, which is life saving, especially given the fact that almost all the hospitalizations and almost all the deaths we're now seeing from covid are related to people that are unvaccinated. what more do you have to do to persuade americans? it's really mind boggling, i have to say. >> all this follows that israeli ministry of health report that came out a few days ago saying that the pfizer vaccine's efficacy was going down for getting covid but it was still very high fr

and pfizer is producing a third shot. the cdc says not so fast, next. >>> right now at 11:00, northern california rocked by a 6.0 earthquake. tonight the shaking continues. >> i think it made it that much more scarier. you could literally see the ground moving. >> from the bay area to tahoe, what we're hearing about the late night aftershocks that are catching our attention in a big way. >>> also, you may want to rethink your plans this weekend. i'm tracking the extreme heat about to hit the bay area. >>> and do we really need another shot? as the delta variant spreads, the experts weigh in. i'm raj mathai. at this hour the ground is still shaking. most notably a 4.3 magnitude aftershock that shook south lake tahoe. that follows the 6.0 earthquake from tahoe to the bay area to los angeles. seismologists are still analyzing the shaking and the aftermath. this is video from coleville, california. you can see the boulders flying there in the distance. really, that rock slide. this is that california/nevada border. you see al

now i'm moving to pfizer how were pfizer results? >> pfizer was very, very solid >> get your mind out of the gutter >> the personal experience, the peter lynch way of investing i agree with you on that >> pfizer was 47 in 1999 it is at 42. it's like a bond >> i know. well, that's not a bad thing these days with the 3.7% dividend yield look, it is up 14% this year better than the 6% they did a year ago some of those key products up 13%. that's what you want to see. we don't know the sustainable covid would be >> that platform represents more of thefuture you like chick-fil-a >> my daughter loves chick-fil-a, are you kidding >> if you could franchise it still waiting on boeing results. we have a big line up here making more on the markets and later apple and tesla. and ken langone will join us we'll cover a lot of topics here in the 8:00 a.m. hour. senator elizabeth warren on crypto and taxes and more. looking at futures posed for a roughly flat open. the dow posed open lower and the nasdaq stays higher. stay with us plans for the long

. >> pfizer met today with the u.s. food and drug administration to advocate covid-19 booster shots. the company wants authorization for a third dose of its vaccine. federal officials saying it is not you did -- it is not needed yet. the world health organization appealed to shipping vaccines to poor nations before anyone adds booster shots. firefighters across the western u.s. faced another day of searing heat. the largest wildfire of the year in california has already scorched about 140 square miles along the nevada state line and it is about 25% contained. a fire in oregon damag electrical transmission lines into california's power grid forcing operators to call for conservation. at least 50 texas democratic lawmakers fled the state in an effort to block new voting restrictions. the democratic lawmakers flew to washington to demand federal action on protecting voting rights. they are trying to deny majority republicans a quorum to do business in a special legislative session. the death toll reached 94 today at a coll

, unfortunate it sounds like it's pfizer versus administration officials. that should not be what we take away, but it is because we still have, as you pointed out, a little bit under half the country that has not been vaccinated. imagine that in some places, andrea, this gives fuel to the notion that we do not need to be vaccinated because the government and the manufacturers can't even agree on what we need to do. and that is unfortunate and i hope that we can clear that up now, that this is a conversation that should be led by scientists and public health officials. >> now, is the pushback from the administration also because they're concerned that they need to be focused on the people who are not vaccinated yet, and these efforts which become more critical as the delta variant spreads, and potentially these people, many of them in red states, many of them young men, many of them perhaps responding to the political impulse, we saw it again at the political action group this weekend. is that potentially a problem? because those people become petri dishes

drug maker pfizer met today with the u.s. food and drug administration to advocate covid-19 booster shots. the company wants authorization for a third dose of its vaccine. federal officials say it is not needed, yet. meanwhile, the world health organization appealed for shipping vaccines to poor nations before anyone adds booster shots. firefighters across e western u.s. have faced another day of searing heat. the largest wildfire of the year in california has already scorched about 140 square miles along the nevada state line. a fire in oregon damaged transmission lines, forcing california's power grid operators to call for conservation. the death toll reached 94 today at a collapsed condominium building near miami. crews found four more bodies, leaving 22 people still missing. the mayor of miami-dade county acknowledged it's getting harder to identify decomposing remains. >> at this step in the recovery process, we must rely heavily on the work of the medical examiner's office. they're undertaking technical and scientific p

is looking at boosters for pfizer, for the pfizer vaccination and so forth so the data will come in for the same vaccine basically but from an immunological standpoint it shouldn't make any difference. >> we are getting questions on facebook that i want to ask. one person says if vaccinated people are contagious what is the use of the vaccine? >> vaccinated people are not contagious. what we have discovered, again, brand-new data with the highly contagious delta variant and we should be aware that new variants may come along, that there is a possibility that the rare person who is a breakthrough infection has enough virus to spread it. it is not that vaccinated people are can just contagious. nobody expected it to be 100% effective. if you do get infected after vaccination there is a possibility you could spread it and that is true for all vaccines. if you have a breakthrough infection after the measles, you can spread it to somebody else. >> right. so the cdc is asking everyone to wear masks in places with high transmission rates. that is the entire bay area. california health is r

booster shots after pfizer said a third dose would offer more protection how the cdc and fda are pushing back dr. fauci is here to answer your questions. >>> two americans brought before the cameras today among the suspects in the assassination of haiti's president. what they've told authorities, and tonight word the fbi is joining the investigation. >>> president biden's new call with vladimir putin warning him again over relentless cyber attacks. >>> elsa slalamming the northeast, flooding new york subway stations and in the west another punishing heatwave more than 30 million under alert. >>> the head of the fda calling for investigation into a controversial alzheimer's drug >>> a new twist in the billionaire space race just hours before richard branson hopes to blast off into history. >>> and the 14-year-old whwho made history of her own at the national spelling bee. and that's not the only talent making her a star >> announcer: this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt >> good evening. i'm peter alexander in for lester we begin tonight with two major headlines in the fight to comb

government and pfizer are not sending the same message on the boosters but what pfizer is saying is playing out in mississippi where the state health officer is sounding an alarm. according to d th dr. thomas do unvaccinated people account for 12% of admissions. it a really low vaccinated state. variant has time to go around. a lot of virus out there. more people get sick and die. dobbs claiming 7% of all deaths were among vaccinated mississippiens. jeff zeleny is live out front of the white house. what more are you learning about what the white house plans to do to combat the disinformation from elected representatives and members of the right wing media. >> reporter: erin, that's a small sample of it. the white house is watching all of this carefully and deciding to begin engaging much more forcefully. that is going to begin tomorrow here in a pretty dramatic way. the surgeon general of the united states we're told will be presenting a study here at the white house especially calling all this disinformation and misinformation a public health crisis. so they are going to really be pointing

pfizer said they're working on a booster shot if needed. fda and cdc, i imagine, trying to comfort vaccinated people to say that today you don't need such a booster, is that right? >> that is right. and to be clear what is happening here is that pfizer yesterday announced, hey, we're going to apply to the fda for emergency use authorization for a third shot. so a third shot of the same thing as the two shots that people have already gotten just a third version of it. so that you could have three shots instead of two with the third shot acting as a booster. but there was i lot of surprise about why fiez ser going to be doing that. why are they applying for this authorization, why is it necessary? they talked about waning immunity but there aren't studies that show waning immunity and pfizer didn't offer up any evidence of waning immunity. and this is a pharmaceutical company. they're supposed to specialize in data. the only data they pointed to is this israeli data. so take a look. we discussed this when it came out this week. so israeli dat

at the same time, the efficacy of pfizer's covid vaccine drops to 84% after six months. for the latest on all of this news today, let's bring in me terrell. >> let's start with the second quarter. pfizer posting a beat and a raise for the quarter, driven by the massive covid-19 vaccine in revenue there. but it also grew the underlying business 10% operationally in the second quarter the forecast going way up for the covid-19 vaccine for 2021, now up to $33.5 billion, based on 2.1 billion doses contracted. and they're going to make 3 billion for the total year this year that could go higher company providing updates for the vaccine for kids, expecting data by the end of september down to age 5, showing that a third dose of the original vaccine boosts antibody levels and an oral pill it plans to have data for by the end of the year let's bring in albert boar la to talk about all of this and more. albert, thanks for being with us i want to start with some of the data you mentioned on the call about seeing the immunity wane after six months with the covid vaccine. i think yo

what led pfizer to request authorization for a boost? >> it was data coming out of israel that suggested that people who were vaccinated a while ago, particularly older individuals, might be vulnerable to infection. we see declining efficacy, but it seems to be clustered among people who are older and who were vaccinated a while ago. remember in the united states, we vaccinated some of our most vulnerable citizens at the beginning of the campaign. many nursing home residents were va vaccinated last december. with respect to the boosters, what we're talking about is a third dose of the existing vaccine. and anyone who gets vaccinated right now will not need a booster. if you go out and get vaccinated right now, that vaccine will carry you through the fall and the winter. what we're talking about is people who were vaccinated a while ag ago, and what could be happening is as people's antibodies start to decline because they're further out from their vaccine, the delta variant is sab able to overwhelm the antibodies. and that's why they're

pfizer makes the case for a third vaccine dose as the highly contagious delta variant spreads across the u.s. more than 40 states seeing infections on the rise. one country allowing some adults to get boosters. >>> crisis in the caribbean. protests erupt in cuba. the largest in decades. anger boils over in the streets. what people are demanding. >>> plus, the breaking news overnight after the assassination of haiti's president. the alleged mastermind, now under arrest. >>> flying high. what billionaire richard branson said was his favorite moment of the historic flight and the sweepstakes he's launching. >>> a sticky situation in the sky. what led to this woman being duct taped. >>> it's george's turn. what george stephanopoulos learned while prepping to take over as "jeopardy!" guest host. >>> the super price paid for a rare mario video >>> good monday morning, everyone. we begin with the pandemic and a major step to determine whether booster shots are needed to fight covid-19. >> pfizer is meetling with u.s. officials today to discuss the need for a third shot. it comes after israe

the pfizer vaccine is authorized for use for children. there are studies going on right now in younger children 5 thereby 12 and clinical trials being done from six months to five years of age. pfizer is ahead of the curve in terms of they are working to complete those studies. the moderna vaccine is sort of on its heels. we hope to have the completed clinical trials by the end of the year. but we'll be looking at the science. it's hard to put a date on when science -- scientific studies will be completed. we are hoping to have data by the end of the year for those younger folks. frances: that's encouraging though it seems a long time away as well. are you hearing of any evidence of negative side effects for these younger groups? rebecca: no. those clinical trials are proceeding as we speak. we would not expect to see a different safety profile than what we saw in teens for example. we'll await for the results of the trial. frances: until we get this younger group vaccinated, we all interact with younger children, will we be able to reach

walk us through the pfizer news. i think for some people in the last 24 hours it's felt a little confusing. >> exactly, hallie. yesterday pfizer announced they are close to requesting federal approval for a third shot of their vaccine, a booster shot. they're pointing to research, some initial research showing that if you received that third shot within 6 to 12 months after your initial vaccination it does provide additional immunity especially against the delta variant spreading across the country but then the cdc and the fda released a joint statement kind of slowing it down a little bit saying that the vaccines that are out there are effective. you see on the screen they say americans who have been fully vaccinated do not need a booster shot at this time. the agencies are engaged in science-based, rigorous process to consider whether or when a booster might be necessary. and the rest of that statement they highlight the efficacy of the existing vaccinations that are already on the market and, hallie, i'll tell you

now let's get to pfizer. the potential need for a booster shot, a third shot. do you agree with the cdc, the fda? they came out quickly saying this was simply too early to declare this. >> we've got to be guided by science and evidence and the science is clear, two shots offers a very high degree of protection. i haven't seen anything that says we need a third shot right now. obviously that might change, but right now, two shots is plenty. >> but you're not ruling out the possibility of a booster shot. >> no, in fact next year that may be a possibility. >> dr. jha, thank you as always. >>> in the meantime we move on tonight. the tropical storm elsa slamming the northeast with heavy rain and winds, gusting up to 60 miles per hour. look at the pictures tonight. drivers navigating through washed out roads in new york. torrential rain. we showed you some of this in new york city last night here. part of the subway system under water. the question, what comes next? across much of this country, the dangerous heat moving in. troubling lake levels already. let's get to

he had two shots of the pfizer vaccine. he posted online. he said every health-care professional i've come across in the last few days tell me the two shots of the pfizer vaccine are what's keeping a 52-year-old like me from the far worse experience than the awful one i'm already having. he said, so be careful if you're vaccinated. if you're not, don't wait another second. we have to be realistic, the breakthrough cases are going to happen. >> they're starting to rise, and the reason it's happening is because infection numbers are getting up so high, and delta variant is such a contagious virus. we're going to see these breakthrough infections. the good news is people who have the breakthrough infections don't get sick, don't get hospitalized or die at the same rate, so it's protective, but it's not 100% and we're going to see more infections as delta spreads across the country. >> dr. jha, thanks to you as >the meantime we're going to turn to over news and the disaster unfolding overseas. our team is there with this catastrophic flood emerg

both pfizer and moderna show good effectivity. these are doses. one does end alone is not as effective as it was with the other ones, but that is okay because we want you to complete the full dose. johnson & johnson just came out with information showing that it is also preventing severe illness against the delta variant. we saw that study several months ago that show that johnson & johnson was preventing serious illness in south africa. at the time, the delta variant was the dominant strain there. these vaccines are doing a great job. if you get a breakthrough infection, which means that you still get the coronavirus and covid-19, that is okay. in some situations, it is expected to have some breakthrough infections. means that you are less likely to get sick. >> and here's another question. how soon until we know if we need booster shots. >> i'm going to one up that question, which is, what if we mix. what if we mix the vaccines and you have the j&j then go out and get pfizer or moderna or vice versa, because i did read that oxford researchers fo

pfizer says yes for a booster of its vaccine. the surgeon general says the company's data is part of a, quote, larger puzzle, in effect saying we don't know for sure. we're going to discuss next. >>> plus new details following the dramatic chase in the dramatic assassination of haiti's president. we'll show you step-by-step how they followed the attackers. it is a remarkable report. we'll be live in port-au-prince. >>> plus, there is a stunning new allegation in a new book that rudy giuliani, former president trump's former personal attorney, was telling aides to the president on election night, quote, just say we won. more on those details coming up. you packed a record 1.1 trillion transistors into this chip i invested in invesco qqq a fund that invests in the innovators of the nasdaq 100 like you become an agent of innovation with invesco qqq i've got big news! now, nurtec odt is the first and only medication proven to treat and prevent migraines. don't take if allergic to nurtec. the most common side effects were nausea, stom

the message should be that pfizer's doing this. so it's available in case we do need to do in the future. >> studies are underway for if and when a booster may be needed. the bigger concern is getting more americans fully vaccinated. french researchers found a single dose of pfizer's two-shot regimen is not enough protection against the delta variant doctor swartzberg says data shows about 10% of people who received the first dose of the vaccine are not returning for the second those people are putting themselves substantial risk, getting really sick from the delta variant perhaps warming up in the hospital and perhaps something even more serious. pfizer is expected to request emergency authorization of a 3rd shot next month. public health authorities will ultimately decide if a booster shot is actually needed. >> and in a joint statement today, the cdc and the fda said fully vaccinated americans at this point do not need booster shots reporting live in the newsroom. dan thorn kron 4 news, thank you dan. well, that news from pfizer

basically directly refuting what pfizer was talking about now the, the pfizer booster shot they are saying that they are starting to look into this, that they are researching it and that they are starting to internally at least produce it, but not for consumption yet. but the data on this booster shot, what exactly it's made out of what its efficacy rate is. none of that has been released publicly. it's not been peer reviewed at all. and so phasers basically thing in the next few weeks, we expect to hand over all the data to us officials for them to start to analyze it, to see if they'll approve it. but bottom line is right now, us officials are saying no need for any sort of booster shot. let's reevaluate in a few weeks or so after we see the data. this all comes as more than half, or i should say 24 of the 50 us states are seeing a spike of 10 percent or more in covert infection rates. and in parts of the country that are have vote low vaccination rates. that's where most of the deaths are coming in, the u. s. right now, a 99 percent of the deaths in the u. s. right now from covered 19 a

the second best was the first dose astrazeneca, then pfizer, the second dose. third—best, pfizer, followed by astrazeneca, and fourth was astrazeneca, and fourth was astrazeneca, astrazeneca. it was only four weeks apart, not the recommended 12 weeks. the trial only looked at antibodies, it didn't look at weight cell responses, which protect against disease in the long. so, we have a way to go, as i say. long. so, we have a way to go, as i say-— as i say. other countries have been doing — as i say. other countries have been doing this. _ as i say. other countries have been doing this. we - as i say. other countries have been doing this. we have - as i say. other countries have | been doing this. we have seen other countries mixing vaccines that may given there is this huge push to get as many people possible globally vaccinated. could mixing vaccines be the way forward?— could mixing vaccines be the way forward? yes and is not a new concept- _ way forward? yes and is not a new concept. we _ way forward? yes and is not a new concept. we did - way forward