FDA approves new COVID-19 vaccine as cases rise in D.C.

The FDA has approved updated COVID-19 vaccines just in time as the summer bump in cases continues in D.C.

Why it matters: The CDC recommends that everyone 6 months of age and older should receive the updated doses once they become available, which is expected in the coming days .

The big picture: The number of COVID infections is growing in more than two dozen states as respiratory virus season is fast approaching.

• People's immunity from their previous shots and virus exposure is waning, and the new Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines are tailored to the KP.2 strain — a descendant of the highly contagious JN.1 variant.
• The KP variants account for almost 70% of all current cases in the U.S.

By the numbers: The weekly case rate in D.C. is still in the "low" category. But it more than doubled from about 13 cases per 100,000 people to 30 last week, according to city stats .

• COVID-19 hospitalizations have been 0% since April.

"Barring the emergence of a markedly more infectious variant," the FDA said it anticipates the composition of COVID-19 vaccines will need to be assessed annually in the same way seasonal flu vaccines are.