Will develop booster shot for new Covid variant: Moderna

It is one of three strategies the company is working to address the new threat, including a higher dose of its existing vaccine, Moderna said.

The US pharmaceutical company Moderna said Friday it will develop a booster shot against the new Omicron variant of the coronavirus.

A health care worker fills up a syringe with a dose of Moderna's Covid-19 vaccine for a booster shot at the vaccination reference center at the Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Prevention Institute (EBPI) in Zurich, Switzerland. (Reuters)

It is one of three strategies the company is working to address the new threat, including a higher dose of its existing vaccine, Moderna said.

"The mutations in the Omicron variant are concerning and for several days, we have been moving as fast as possible to execute our strategy to address this variant," said Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel.