Omicron vaccine

U.S. company Pfizer said that a vaccine that is adapted to the omicron strain of coronavirus will be ready in March 2022. Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla announced this on Monday.

"This vaccine will be ready in March. We are already beginning production of some number of doses, taking the risks," CNBC quoted him as saying. Bourla explained that it is unclear at this point whether there is a need for a specially adapted vaccine, but that the company will prepare some quantities in advance, responding to demand from a number of countries.

Pfizer's CEO said, "The current vaccine provides acceptable protection, for example, for vaccine a 3rd dose of vaccination, so we want to make it more effective in preventing infection."

In December, U.S. Chief Infectious Disease Officer Anthony Fauci said there was no need for a third dose vaccination specifically adapted to the new variant of the coronavirus because "conventional booster vaccines will do just fine."

The head of Moderna, Stephane Bancel, was also interviewed by CNBC on Monday. He said Moderna's vaccine, adapted to the omicron strain, will be ready this fall.

Pfizer is an American multinational pharmaceutical company, one of the largest in the world. The company was founded by Karl Christian Friedrich Pfizer in 1849. The company's headquarters is located in New York City.