Technologies

FDA could soon authorize Pfizer COVID-19 booster shots for all adults

The move would expand eligibility for the vaccine booster, which the CDC has already approved for specific groups.

The US Food and Drug Administration could authorize Pfizer’s COVID-19 booster shot for all adults as early as Thursday, The New York Times reported Tuesday. That would mean any adult who got a second dose of the vaccine at least six months prior could be eligible to get the third shot as soon as this weekend, if regulators sign off on the move.

The FDA didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and its vaccine advisory committee will still need to sign off on the boosters before they become available to all Americans. The committee has a meeting scheduled for Friday to discuss the booster dose, according to The Times. The CDC didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

In September, the FDA approved Pfizer’s COVID-19 booster shot for adults who are 65 and older or at-risk. The CDC then approved Pfizer’s booster shot for those Americans. Last month, the FDA also greenlit Moderna’s COVID-19 booster shot for adults 65 and older or at-risk, as well as Johnson & Johnson’s COVID booster for adults 18 and older.

Additionally, the FDA last month approved the option for eligible people to «mix and match» vaccines when getting their booster, meaning someone who got one kind of vaccine for the initial dose could get a booster shot of a different vaccine.

Last week, Pfizer asked the FDA for approval of its booster shot for anyone 18 and older. In the meantime, states such as California, Colorado and New Mexico have already authorized all adults to receive the extra vaccine.

Multiple studies show that vaccine effectiveness could start to drop after six to eight months. Recent studies say a booster dose of Pfizer shows 95.6% vaccine efficacy against COVID-19.

The COVID-19 vaccines are highly effective at preventing hospitalization and deaths. More than 99% of COVID deaths are of unvaccinated people, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the president’s chief medical advisor, told CBS in early July. And people who aren’t fully vaccinated were more than 10 times more likely to be hospitalized and 11 times more likely to die from COVID-19 in the spring and summer, compared with those who are fully vaccinated, The Washington Post reported. Over 58% of the US population is fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to the CDC.

While boosters could provide added protection to millions of Americans, only around 4.6% of people in low-income countries have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections Hints, Answers and Help for Nov. 3, #876

Here are some hints and the answers for the NYT Connections puzzle No. 876 for Monday, Nov. 3.

Looking for the most recent Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

Today’s NYT Connections puzzle has some exceptionally long clues. All of them have at least two words. If you need help, you’re in the right place. Read on for clues and today’s Connections answers.

The Times now has a Connections Bot, like the one for Wordle. Go there after you play to receive a numeric score and to have the program analyze your answers. Players who are registered with the Times Games section can now nerd out by following their progress, including the number of puzzles completed, win rate, number of times they nabbed a perfect score and their win streak.

Read more: Hints, Tips and Strategies to Help You Win at NYT Connections Every Time

Hints for today’s Connections groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Primary color.

Green group hint: Your lungs also qualify.

Blue group hint: Parents’ nightmare toys.

Purple group hint: Look for a connection in the second word of each phrase.

Answers for today’s Connections groups

Yellow group: Things that are red.

Green group: Things filled with air.

Blue group: Things with a lot of pieces.

Purple group: Ending with animals.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is things that are red. The four answers are clown nose, fire engine, maraschino cherry and stop sign.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is things filled with air. The four answers are balloon animal, bouncy castle, water wings and whoopee cushion.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is things with a lot of pieces. The four answers are jigsaw puzzle, Lego set, Lite-Brite and pick-up sticks.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is ending with animals. The four answers are dark horse, funky chicken, jumbo shrimp and sea monkey.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Strands Hints, Answers and Help for Nov. 3 #610

Here are hints and answers for the NYT Strands puzzle No. 610 for Monday, Nov. 3.

Looking for the most recent Strands answer? Click here for our daily Strands hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Today’s NYT Strands puzzle is a really fun one that may take you back to your childhood. If you need hints and answers, read on.

I go into depth about the rules for Strands in this story.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections and Mini Crossword answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: NYT Connections Turns 1: These Are the 5 Toughest Puzzles So Far

Hint for today’s Strands puzzle

Today’s Strands theme is: Wee wee wee!

If that doesn’t help you, here’s a clue: Nursery rhyme counted out on a child’s toes.

Clue words to unlock in-game hints

Your goal is to find hidden words that fit the puzzle’s theme. If you’re stuck, find any words you can. Every time you find three words of four letters or more, Strands will reveal one of the theme words. These are the words I used to get those hints, but any words of four or more letters that you find will work:

RANT, TAME, TAMES, NAME, NAMES, RATE, RATED, GORE, SAME, SPRIG, MARK

Answers for today’s Strands puzzle

These are the answers that tie into the theme. The goal of the puzzle is to find them all, including the spangram, a theme word that reaches from one side of the puzzle to the other. When you have all of them (I originally thought there were always eight, but learned that the number can vary), every letter on the board will be used. Here are the nonspangram answers:

WENT, MARKET, STAYED, HOME, ROAST, BEEF, NONE

(Confused? Read this classic nursery rhyme.)

Today’s Strands spangram

Today’s Strands spangram is THISLITTLEPIGGY. To find it, start with a T that’s a bit hard to find. You’ll need to go over three rows from the far left, then count down six letters to find the correct T. Then you wind around and back up (see image above).