• Biden administration officials have told various news outlets that the White House is planning to urge Americans to get a COVID booster shot this fall in response to a spike in infections. Yahoo Finance
• An anonymous official told Reuters, "We will be encouraging all Americans to get those boosters in addition to flu shots and RSV [Respiratory Syncytial Virus] shots.” Reuters (LR: 3 CP: 5)
• Last week the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and World Health Organization (WHO) announced they have discovered another COVID variant. The BA.2.86 is one of dozens of variants being monitored as it carries “a large number of mutations.” FOX News (LR: 4 CP: 4)
• Large pharmaceutical companies have been developing vaccines for the emerging variants, as Moderna announced Thursday that initial data showed its new booster is effective against the “Eris” and “Fornax” subvariants. Meanwhile, Novavax, Pfizer, and BioNTech SE have created updated shots to counter the XBB1.5 subvariant. Mint
• While CDC data suggests there will be an uptick in cases, overall levels of infections and hospitalizations remain low. Breitbart (LR: 5 CP: 3)

Pro-establishment narrative:

• As summer turns into fall, COVID cases along with flu and RSV infections are expected to rise, and responsible adults should get their booster shots to look out for their health and the health of others. Respiratory viruses continue to mutate at a rapid rate, and new vaccines are required to keep up with these mutations. The COVID vaccines have saved countless lives, and taking boosters this fall will help protect Americans from new variants.
  NBC (LR: 2 CP: 4)

Establishment-critical narrative:

• Here we go again. The Biden admin. is back pushing big pharma’s latest shot to “protect” against new variants of COVID. It was understandable for people to “do their part” and take the first vaccine in 2021 after the dystopian lockdowns of 2020, but the developments of the last three years show that these vaccines are enriching big pharma and the political machine behind them. Don't be surprised if there aren't many people lining up for this latest booster this fall.
  DC Enquirer

Nerd narrative:

• There's a 50% chance the WHO will announce the COVID-19 pandemic has ended by August 2024, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
  Metaculus (LR: 3 CP: 3)