With new FDA ruling, CDC panel upheaval, it's 'purgatory' for COVID-19 vaccines - Albany Times Union [View all]

Updated versions of the jab were approved last week, but federal recommendations limit who should receive them

The FDA now recommends the Moderna vaccines for adults 65 and older or anyone over 12 with an underlying health condition.

You might be able to get a COVID-19 vaccine at a pharmacy soon. Or you might not. Or you might need to be over 65, have an underlying health condition, or have a prescription from a doctor.

Thanks to narrower recommendations from the Food and Drug Administration and a shakeup of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s vaccine panel, the process for many people of conveniently getting a COVID-19 shot at a local pharmacy without first consulting with a doctor has been upended — at least for now.

“I want to say it’s purgatory right now,” state Assemblyman John McDonald, a former co-owner and current pharmacist at Marra’s Pharmacy in Cohoes, said. “We’re kind of in a waiting mode.”

McDonald, a Democrat who represents the 108th district, said Marra’s is currently waiting for the latest version of the COVID-19 vaccine to be shipped, as well as further guidance from the state. A spokesperson for Hannaford said the new vaccine will be at its pharmacies this week, but customers will need a prescription to receive one. The same is true at any CVS pharmacy in New York, a spokesperson said.

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