BioNTech co-founder says third dose of vaccine may be needed

The chief medical officer of BioNTech told CNBC on Wednesday that people will likely need a third shot of its two-dose coronavirus vaccine as immunity against the virus wanes, agreeing with previous comments made by Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla.

Dr. Ozlem Tureci, co-founder and CMO of BioNTech, which developed a vaccine with Pfizer, said she also expects people will need to get vaccinated against the coronavirus annually, like for the seasonal flu. That’s because, she said, scientists expect vaccine-induced immunity against the virus will decrease over time.

“We see indications for this also in the induced, but also the natural immune response against SARS-COV-2,” she said during an interview with CNBC’s Kelly Evans on “The Exchange.”

“We see this waning of immune responses also in people who were just infected and therefore [it’s] also expected with the vaccines.”