Technologies

Moderna booster shot and omicron: CDC guidance, effectiveness, side effects and more

Scientists and health officials strongly urge booster shots for Moderna and Pfizer as the omicron variant of the virus that causes COVID-19 begins to circulate in the US.

For the most up-to-date news and information about the coronavirus pandemic, visit the WHO and CDC websites.

Nearly 7 million booster shots — from Moderna, Pfizer and Johnson & Jonhson — were given last week in the US, a record high so far. The reason? In part, according to White House Coronavirus Response Coordinator Jeff Zients, is that people want to protect themselves against the omicron variant. «The best thing you can do if you’re concerned about omicron is to get boosted,» he said during a White House briefing on Tuesday.

Much is still unknown about the omicron variant, including how easily it can pass between people, how serious an infection it can cause and if it can evade immunity. But with more than 100 million people in the US eligible to receive a Moderna, Pfizer or Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 booster shot, the US is doubling down on COVID vaccine efforts, including administering booster shots. (President Joe Biden’s campaign also includes «free» at-home COVID-19 test kits and stricter travel rules for international travelers.)

Health professionals believe that booster shots from Moderna and Pfizercould help slow COVID’s spread, reducing hospitalization and deaths, asthe effects of the vaccine weaken over time. The CDC urges booster shots for anyone over 18, six months after theirsecond dose of Moderna or Pfizer, or two months after getting asingle Johnson & Johnson dose.

The COVID-19 vaccines have proven to be highly effective in preventing hospitalization. People who are unvaccinated are 10 times more likely to be hospitalized if infected. With the federal vaccine mandate halted by a court order, Biden is turning to other measures to get booster shots administered. The government has also ordered 13 million courses of antiviral drugs in anticipation of higher case loads this winter.

Here’s what you need to know about the Moderna booster, including doses, side effects and how to get a free ride. For more details, here’s the latest on COVID-19 vaccines for kids, how you can get a free COVID-19 test kit soon and what to know about breakthrough infections.

Does a COVID vaccine booster protect against the omicron variant?

While it could be two or three weeks until we know more about how easilyomicron can pass from person to person, and how resistant the COVID variant is against the current crop of vaccines, early data suggests the first series of shots and boosters may help guard against serious illness.In a White House briefing on Tuesday, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said vaccines work and she anticipates they «willat least in part provide some protection against omicron.»

In the same briefing, Dr. Anthony Fauci said scientists are right now examining whether vaccine-induced antibodies lose some of their effectiveness with the omicron variant. Fauci, who is the chief medical advisor to the president, said they could know more as soon as the end of next week.

When is it time to get a COVID booster shot?

If you got Moderna or Pfizer, six months after the date of your second shot listed on yourvaccination card is when you’re eligible to receive your booster dose.The CDC and other health authorities are now urging you to get yourbooster as soon as you’re eligible, to keep your immune response againstomicron, delta and other coronavirus variants as strong as possible.Two months after the Johnson & Johnson vaccine is the time for abooster (more below).

On Dec. 2, Biden also outlined a plan forMedicare to contact the 64 million people it serves and for AARP toreach out to its 38 million senior members. Pharmacies like Walgreens,CVS, RiteAid and others will also contact people who got a vaccine attheir retail stores when it’s time to schedule another dose.

Should people who are pregnant get a booster shot?

The COVID booster recommendations apply to all people 18 years and older, including people who are pregnant. In fact, the CDC urges pregnant people to get a COVID vaccine — and a booster is half a full vaccine dose.

«People who are pregnant or recently pregnant are more likely to get severely ill with COVID-19 compared with people who are not pregnant,» the CDC says on its website.

A recent study also linked COVID-19 infection in pregnant people to higher risk of stillbirth. However, there is no evidence that getting vaccinated decreases fertility in women or men.

Is the Moderna booster shot a third dose?

Booster shots of COVID-19 vaccines are currently half doses of the same vaccine used in the first two full shots. The goal is to top up the vaccine formula that reinforces the body’s immune response against the virus and its variants. The Moderna booster authorized by the CDC is a 50-microgram dose, while the first two shots were each 100 micrograms.

Moderna is also working on a combination shot that contains this year’s flu vaccine and its COVID-19 booster vaccine, but that’s not available right now.

Is Moderna making an omicron booster shot?

Scientists worry the omicron variant could spread more quickly than the now-dominant delta variant because of the number of mutations the new strain has compared with delta. Moderna is currently working on an omicron-specific booster vaccine, along with testing a COVID-19 vaccine that could protect against several mutated strains of the coronavirus.

Like every other vaccine-maker around the world, Moderna is testing the effectiveness of its COVID-19 vaccine against omicron, but it may be weeks before lab tests show concrete evidence of how well Moderna protects people from the new variant.

As part of its booster testing, Moderna is also investigating whether a 100-microgram dose of its booster provides better protection against the omicron variant — in other words, a third dose rather than a half dose as the booster is currently formulated now.

If Moderna needs to make a new vaccine modified for the variant, it could be available early in2022.

How do I know which pharmacies have Moderna appointments?

Boosters are available at roughly 80,000 places across the country, including over 40,000 local pharmacies. Some 90% of Americans have a vaccine site within 5 miles of where they live.

A terrific free service in conjunction with the CDC sends you information when you text your ZIP code to this number: 438829. The response will show you COVID-19 vaccine locations in your area, along with the brand they carry for certain age groups, for instance, Moderna 18+. This can save you the trial and error of calling around, or showing up to your appointment to find that your booster of choice isn’t available. The text can also give you a shortcut to make your appointment right from your phone screen.

You can also check Vaccines.gov to see which vaccines are available where, and call 800-232-0233 for vaccine information.

How can I get a free ride to get my booster shot?

Lyft and Uber are offering free rides for some people who need them. An easy way to access those links for more information is through the text feature above You can also go to Lyft.com/vax or call Uber at: 855-921-0033.

Who can get a Moderna booster shot right now?

As of Nov. 19, all US adults — those age 18 and older — are eligible to get a booster shot of the COVID-19 vaccine. They qualify if it’s been at least six months since they’ve received a second dose of either the Moderna or Pfizer vaccine. Those who received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine are eligible for a booster dose after two months. Adults are encouraged to get whatever booster dose is available to them, even if that means mixing and matching vaccine boosters (more below), in other words, getting a different booster shot than their original vaccination.

What are the side effects of Moderna’s booster?

According to the CDC, those who got the Moderna booster dose reported fewer reactions than they did after the second dose of the vaccine. In its study, the CDC found 95% of those who got Moderna for the first round of vaccine shots chose Moderna for the booster dose.

Is it safe to mix and match vaccine and booster brands? Yes

The US Food and Drug Administration has authorized mixing COVID-19 boosters, which in the US means Moderna, Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson. Anyone eligible for a booster can get any of the available brands of coronavirus vaccines. If you initially received Johnson & Johnson and it’s been two months or longer since you received the initial dose, you’ll be able to get the Moderna or Pfizer booster. If you received Moderna or Pfizer for your first two shots, you could pick any authorized vaccine available to you — including J&J — if you qualify and it’s been six months or longer since your second shot.

Is the Moderna COVID-19 booster shot still free?

All booster shots will be free, regardless of immigration or health insurance status. However, depending on where you get your booster shot — for example, at a local pharmacy — you may be asked to log your insurance status. You may be asked to provide your insurance card information, including your name, date of birth and membership number. You will not be charged for your COVID-19 vaccine or booster shot.

Will I need another COVID booster shot?

The CDC updated its guidance to say that in 2022, some immunocompromised people will be able to get a fourth COVID-19 booster shot. It’s unclear if other groups will need to get a fourth dose at this time, but guidance could change in light of the omicron variant.

For more on coronavirus treatments and vaccines, here’s what we know about monoclonal antibody treatments, the new federal vaccine mandates and why some people may not want the shot.

What does the Moderna booster shot do?

A COVID-19 booster shot — whether from Moderna, Pfizer or Johnson & Johnson — tops off your immune response and guards against a breakthrough COVID-19 infection as the vaccine’s effectiveness decreases over time.

Recent studies of the Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccines show that their effectiveness can begin to wane after six months. Moderna said early data suggests that those who received the Moderna vaccine in 2020 are showing a higher rate of breakthrough COVID-19 infections than those vaccinated this year, suggesting the need for a booster to maintain high levels of protection.

The information contained in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as health or medical advice. Always consult a physician or other qualified health provider regarding any questions you may have about a medical condition or health objectives.

Technologies

Anthropic Launched New Claude 4 Gen AI Models. Here’s What They Do

The models can now use tools like web searches during extended reasoning tasks.

The latest versions of Anthropic’s Claude generative AI models made their debut Thursday, including a heavier-duty model built specifically for coding and complex tasks.

Anthropic launched the new Claude 4 Opus and Claude 4 Sonnet models during its Code with Claude developer conference, and executives said the new tools mark a significant step forward in terms of reasoning and deep thinking skills.

The company launched the prior model, Claude 3.7 Sonnet, in February. Since then, competing AI developers have also upped their game. OpenAI released GPT-4.1 in April, with an emphasis on an expanded context window, along with the new o3 reasoning model family. Google followed in early May with an updated version of Gemini 2.5 Pro that it said is better at coding.

Claude 4 Opus is a larger, more resource-intensive model built to handle particularly difficult challenges. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei said test users have seen it quickly handle tasks that might have taken a person several hours to complete.

«In many ways, as we’re often finding with large models, the benchmarks don’t fully do justice to it,» he said during the keynote event.

Claude 4 Sonnet is a leaner model, with improvements built on Anthropic’s Claude 3.7 Sonnet model. The 3.7 model often had problems with overeagerness and sometimes did more than the person asked it to do, Amodei said. While it’s a less resource-intensive model, it still performs well, he said.

«It actually does just as well as Opus on some of the coding benchmarks, but I think it’s leaner and more narrowly focused,» Amodei said.

Anthropic said the models have a new capability, still being beta tested, in which they can use tools like web searches while engaged in extended reasoning. The models can alternate between reasoning and using tools to get better responses to complex queries.

The models both offer near-instant response modes and extended thinking modes.

All of the paid plans offer both Opus and Sonnet models, while the free plan just has the Sonnet model.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Strands Hints, Answers and Help for May 23, #446

Here are hints and answers for the NYT Strands puzzle No. 446 for May 23.

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 has a humorous title, and if you understand the reference, you’ll know what words to look for. 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: The musical fruit

If that doesn’t help you, here’s a clue: There are magical ones in fairy tales.

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:

REEK, GADS, PLAY, PLAYS, PITA, DIAL, FALL, PALL, PALLS, FALLS, GENIE, BEEN, LACK, DENY, NILL.

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’ve got 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:

FAVA, NAVY, BLACK, GREEN, PINTO, KIDNEY, CANNELLINI

Today’s Strands spangram

Today’s Strands spangram is BEANSALAD. To find it, start with the B that’s three letters to the right on the top row, and wind down.

Technologies

The Marvel Rivals Auto Battler Is a Natural Evolution of Hero Shooters

Move over Teamfight Tactics. Marvel Rivals’ new limited-time mode is the perfect addition to the auto battler genre.

Marvel Rivals has been a breath of fresh air for the hero shooter genre, combining popular comic book characters and chaotic third-person shooter action to create epic team fights that keep me coming back for more.

Fast-paced combat is the name of the game in Marvel Rivals, which is why it could come across as a confusing development that the next limited-time mode launching in Marvel Rivals Season 2.5 is a form of auto battler (also frequently referred to as auto chess).

Ultron’s Battle Matrix Protocol is an experimental mode launching on June 6, where six players will draft teams of heroes to go head to head with their opponents’ drafts. You’ll be able to support your AI teams while the new hero Ultron (also debuting in season 2.5) is chipping in extra healing and damage to the fight.

Aside from the fact that it’ll be cool to stage your own version of Marvel Comics’ Secret Wars, is the decision to add an auto battler to Marvel Rivals (which has previously released limited-time modes that mostly tracked with the shooter’s core gameplay loop) really all that far out of left field? I don’t think so.

Why is Marvel Rivals getting an auto battler mode?

The new mode is similar to multiplayer online battle arena spinoffs such as Dota Auto Chess and League of Legends’ Teamfight Tactics. I think drawing the line from a multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) to auto battler is easy for most people.

MOBAs are strategy games first and foremost, where players pick and choose items to craft builds that will help them win their lane, while also contributing to big team fights. Players need to work together to overwhelm the other team and push them back to their spawn.

MOBAs and auto battlers are both about team synergy, positioning and picking the right upgrades, so it’s not surprising to people when characters from a game in one of these genres appear in another.

There are many people that wouldn’t associate hero shooters with MOBAs in the slightest. Games like Marvel Rivals have a high ceiling for very different mechanical skills — especially aiming. But hero shooters are also complex strategy games that share many of the same fundamentals as a MOBA.

Putting together a viable team composition with strong character is the most important part of a hero shooter — and Marvel Rivals takes this to another level with the strongest team-up abilities that require multiple heroes to activate.

An auto battler will allow people to experiment team compositions that don’t often get played in real Marvel Rivals’ matches, and could even help the community find new experimental hero combinations that have the potential to shake up common ways people play the game.

In Ultron’s Battle Matrix Protocol, as the auto battler mode is called, players will be able to put together balanced teams, lock in the risky GATOR strategy (which is nightmarishly similar to Overwatch’s GOATS meta) or fall back on triple support with brand new upgrades that change how the game works.

Absurd power scaling might look like Overwatch 2’s Stadium mode

There’s a clear rivalry between Overwatch 2 and Marvel Rivals, since they’re the two biggest hero shooters on the market right now. Blizzard’s hero shooter is entering its ninth year of life with flagging interest, but its solid fundamentals have been a high bar for Marvel Rivals to hurdle.

Both games have been trying out bold new things — Overwatch 2 recently shipped the MOBA-like Stadium mode that lets players augment popular abilities and take powerful passives as they fight in a flurry of different objectives in a best of seven gauntlet.

Ultron’s Battle Matrix Protocol in some ways feels like NetEase’s response to Blizzard’s big success with Stadium mode. You might not have quite as much influence on the outcome of each battle, but this serves as a proof of concept for Marvel Rivals’ hero power scaling.

This new mode also lets players pick passive abilities that buff certain roles as well as more powerful hero-specific upgrades that drastically alter the course of a fight, so the snowballing power of a Stadium match is very much emulated here.

In the Season 2.5 developer vision video, we got a look at what some of the upgrades will look like.

Venom can grow into a hulking monster after devouring enemies with his ultimate ability, Hela cuts a swath through the playing field with a field of flying daggers, Psylocke zips around her ultimate ability’s area of effect at twice her normal speed and Namor summons many more squid turrets to attack his enemies.

It’s safe to assume that every character in the game will have some kind of special power unlocked in the later rounds of an Ultron’s Battle Matrix Protocol match. This definitely isn’t NetEase reheating Blizzard’s nachos, but I do think it’s indicative of a broader shift toward making hero shooters feel a little bit more chaotic and unrestrained.

Game balance is important, but one of the biggest draws of this genre is that each character is a unique power fantasy you can’t find elsewhere. I can’t imagine such in-depth upgrades were designed for a one-and-done mode, so it’ll be interesting to see where they might show up next.