2024–25 COVID Vaccines Show Waning Protection

A JAMA Internal Medicine analysis reported that updated 2024–2025 COVID-19 vaccines provided meaningful protection—peaking about four weeks after vaccination (≈44.7% against infection and 57.5% against hospitalization or death) and waning substantially by 20 weeks (to roughly 16.7% vs infection and 34.0% vs hospitalization/death). Effectiveness was similar across Omicron subvariants, and the authors concluded annual vaccination remains beneficial, particularly for people at high risk of severe outcomes. State immunization data showed uptake fell about 33% in Wisconsin in September versus last year, while forthcoming University of Wisconsin–Madison analyses and an Indiana study found strong indirect effects: vaccinated children had an estimated 80% reduction in infections and every two vaccinated children prevented about one additional household case. Separate research published in Nature and accompanying commentary suggest mRNA vaccination may sensitize tumors to immune checkpoint inhibitors, with retrospective analyses showing longer survival for patients who began immunotherapy within 100 days of vaccination and supportive preclinical data. A regulatory case study described an emergency investigational new drug remediation that consolidated missed safety reports and restored compliance, illustrating operational strategies for handling high‑stakes vaccine regulatory challenges.