EU officials say it’s too early to consider 4th COVID dose

LONDON (AP) — European health officials say it’s too early to consider giving the fourth dose of messenger RNA coronavirus vaccines to most people, but say an extra booster can be administered to people over age 80.

In a statement on Wednesday, the European Medicines Agency and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control said they had reviewed data for a fourth dose of the COVID-19 vaccines made by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna Inc.

The agencies said there was no evidence that a fourth dose would benefit people under age 80, but acknowledged that if the epidemic changed, new guidance might be necessary.