Korea Gives Green Light to Moderna’s Latest COVID-19 Vaccine: Mass Vaccination Set to Roll Out in October

Moderna Korea announced that its updated COVID-19 vaccine, Spikevax JNJ, received approval from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety on the 11th.

The World Health Organization (WHO) recommended the JN. 1 series vaccine ahead of the COVID-19 vaccination this year. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency decided to use the JN. 1 vaccine after deliberation by the COVID-19 vaccine expert advisory meeting and the immunization expert committee. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency currently evaluates that the JN. 1 series vaccine will be able to respond to the KP. 3 variant, as KP. 3, which accounts for the highest proportion of the domestically prevalent strains, is a lower variant of the JN. 1 series.

Spikebox JNJ is a vaccine that can prevent COVID-19 by responding to the new JN.1 variant, and can be used in adolescents and adults aged 12 years or older. Moderna plans to have Samsung BioLogics manufacture all of Spikebox JNJ under contract, and plans to supply it domestically in time for the government’s 2024-2025 seasonal COVID-19 vaccination starting in October.

According to the national immunization plan, Spikevax JNJ is provided free of charge to high-risk groups including the elderly aged 65 or older, immunocompromised individuals, and those hospitalized or admitted to facilities vulnerable to infection. People aged 64 or younger can also receive the vaccine for a fee, like the influenza vaccine.

“The COVID-19 virus continues to mutate and still poses a major threat to the health of high-risk groups,” said Kim Sang-pyo, CEO of Moderna Korea. “We expect that the latest COVID-19 vaccine that responds to the currently prevalent virus will help protect high-risk groups from severe illness and hospitalization.”

Meanwhile, Spikevax-JN has been approved in Japan, Taiwan, and the UK, and on the 5th, the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) under the European Medicines Agency (EMA) recommended approval of Spikevax-JN as a vaccine to help prevent COVID-19 for infants 6 months of age and older and adults.