Alliance to VRBPAC: COVID-19 Vaccines Remain Our Best Defense

Today, Alliance for Aging Research Director of Health Programs Katrin Werner-Perez provided oral comments at the FDA’s Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC) meeting. Her comments highlighted a letter sent to VRBPAC ahead of the meeting which was signed by more than 30 other organizations.

In short, the letter urges VRBPAC and the FDA to do two things:

• Provide manufacturers with an immediate recommendation regarding the 2026-2027 updated strain for COVID-19 vaccines for use in the United States so that production can begin without delay and vaccines are available ahead of the upcoming respiratory season;
• Work to facilitate continued availability of both mRNA-based and protein-based vaccines for the 2026-2027 season so that healthcare professionals, patients, and family caregivers have a choice among options that have met regulatory standards for safety and effectiveness.

Read the full letter and view the list of supporting organizations.

The comments delivered at the meeting are as follows:

Good afternoon, my name is Katrin Werner-Perez, and I serve as the Director of Health Programs at the Alliance for Aging Research. We thank the FDA leadership for convening this VRBPAC meeting and for the opportunity to provide public comments.

The FDA’s advisory committees, including VRBPAC, play an important role in the regulatory ecosystem. Today’s open forum is another step toward strengthening public overall confidence in the FDA’s regulatory decisions and knowledge that they are informed by rigorous analysis and diverse expert perspectives. We encourage the Agency to continue leveraging these venues to support transparent scientific dialogue going forward.

Last night, we submitted a sign-on letter on behalf of more than 30 organizations who urge the VRBPAC and the FDA to consider the following two requests:

First, we ask that the committee provide manufacturers with an immediate recommendation regarding the 2026-2027 updated strain for COVID-19 vaccines for use in the United States so that production can begin without delay and so that vaccines are available ahead of the upcoming respiratory season.

COVID-19 remains a leading cause of doctor visits, hospitalizations, and deaths caused by respiratory viruses in the United States. As of May 9, 2026, preliminary data from the 2025-2026 COVID-19 season in the U.S. indicate that COVID-19 infections were responsible for an estimated 780,000 to 2.3 million outpatient visits; over 120,000 hospitalizations; and over 13,000 deaths. This burden of COVID-19 deaths is shouldered disproportionately by Americans ages 65 and older and other high-risk groups. A recent study found that most of those who died from COVID at ages 65 and over were unlikely to have been close to death prior to infection, 28% of whom were estimated to survive an additional five years had they not had the infection.

While the number of people exposed to COVID-19 antigens has been increasing due to vaccinations and infections, the virus continues to evolve rapidly and is therefore becoming increasingly immune evasive. Because immunity wanes over time, there remains an urgent public health need for continued availability of safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines that can help boost individual and group immunity.

Secondly, we ask the committee to continue to honor patient choice and promote uptake by facilitating continued availability of mRNA-based and protein-based vaccines. While FDA approved and authorized vaccines are roughly comparable in terms of safety and effectiveness, patients may either prefer one vaccine over another, especially considering the difference in technologies.

Beyond issues of choice, supply chain stability is a practical and public health imperative. Relying on multiple vaccine manufacturers decreases the risk of a potential vaccine shortage, should there be a future supply chain disruption. In addition, maintaining multiple production lines helps ensure that updated vaccines can be produced as necessary to address new virus variants. We urge the FDA to continue facilitating a resilient supply chain for COVID-19 vaccines.

Vaccines offer the single best method for preventing infection, severe illness, and death from COVID-19 for all age groups. And while the benefits of vaccination in terms of protection against death are disproportionately realized by older Americans and other immunocompromised individuals, vaccines remain an important protective option for both adults and children to reduce acute morbidity from COVID-19 as well as long COVID and downstream complications, such as sepsis and other life-threatening conditions.

We encourage the VRBPAC and the FDA to echo these messages as much as possible today.

Thank you.