An advisory committee of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) unanimously recommended on Thursday that Modena (Moderna Inc)'s COVID-19 vaccine be provided to people aged 65 and older and other vulnerable people.

The non-binding decision of the Advisory Committee on FDA Vaccines and related Biological products (VRBPAC) will enable Modena's COVID-19 to strengthen the needle guidelines.Pfizer Inc/ BioNTech's policy of strengthening the needle is consistent.

FDA is likely to make a final decision on Modena's reinforcement needle within a few days. The Vaccine Advisory Committee of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is expected to vote on FDA's proposal next week.

COVID-19 's booster vaccination has always been a controversial topic, especially when many people in the United States and other parts of the world have not even received a single dose of the vaccine. The World Health Organization is urging rich countries to postpone enhanced injections in order to provide more COVID-19 vaccines to poor countries and regions with backward immunization rates. Some scientists say they don't think most Americans need to strengthen needles now.

Modena submitted an application for authorization for reinforcement needles to FDA on Sept. 1. Both Modena and Pfizer Inc said earlier that the efficacy of their COVID-19 vaccine would diminish over time, and the use of strengthening needles could significantly improve the effectiveness of the vaccine.