Sunday shows preview: CDC signs off on ‘mix and match’ vaccine boosters

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) green light on “mixing and matching” vaccine boosters and Democrats’ optimism that they can come to a deal over a human infrastructure bill are expected to dominate this Sunday’s show circuit.

On Thursday night, CDC Director Rochelle Walensky officially signed off on approval for mix-and-match booster shots to combat COVID-19.

The news came after Moderna and Johnson & Johnson booster shots were approved for certain individuals.

Walensky’s decision now allows for roughly 100 million eligible Americans to get a booster, including those previously approved to get the Pfizer booster.

“These recommendations are another example of our fundamental commitment to protect as many people as possible from COVID-19,” Walensky said in a statement.

However, during a Friday briefing she noted that the agency would not provide a recommendation over which vaccine brand Americans should receive for their booster — be it the same as their first series, or different.  More guidance over this particular question has been sought by a CDC panel from the agency. 

However,  both Surgeon General Vivek Murthy and President Biden’s chief medical adviser Anthony Fauci suggested it would be best for Americans to stick with the same vaccine brand they previously received for their booster.

“It’s generally recommended that you get the booster, that is the original regimen that you got in the first place. But for one reason or other  — and there may be different circumstances for people — availability or just different personal choices — you can, as we say, mix and match,” Fauci said on CNN’s “New Day” on Friday.

“And those are the data that were discussed and were acted upon yesterday, that you can now mix and match one with the other, but in general it just makes sense to go with what your original regimen was,” Fauci added.

Fauci is slated to appear on ABC’s “This Week” and Walensky is scheduled to appear on “Fox News Sunday.”

Meanwhile, Democrats appear optimistic that a deal over their social spending package is around the corner. 

“We had a very positive meeting this morning; I’m very optimistic,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said on Friday after returning from breakfast with Biden. 

The spending package, which was originally proposed with a $3.5 trillion price tag, will likely be in the range of $2 trillion after pushback from moderates, who expressed concern about the overall amount and pay-fors.

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), a centrist, has previously expressed openness to a figure between $1.9 trillion and $2.2 trillion. Democrats have indicated that Biden was a driver of the negotiations between moderates and progressives after meeting with both groups earlier this week.

“I felt that we’re closer to a deal than I’ve ever felt before. I felt the president was engaged in the details of the negotiation in a way he hasn’t been before,” Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), a House progressive who met with Biden at the White House on Tuesday, said.

Pelosi is scheduled to appear on CNN’s “State of the Union” while Khanna is scheduled to appear on “Fox News Sunday.”

Below are the full list of guests scheduled to appear on this week’s Sunday talk shows:

ABC’s “This Week” — Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

NBC’s “Meet the Press” — To be announced.

CBS’ “Face the Nation” — Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.); Gita Gopinath, chief economist of the International Monetary Fund; Zalmay Khalilzad, former U.S. special envoy for Afghanistan.

CNN’s “State of the Union” — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.); Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen; Gov. Asa Hutchinson (R-Ark.)

“Fox News Sunday” — Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.); Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.)

Fox News Channel’s “Sunday Morning Futures” — Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.); Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), Sen. Foreign Relations Committee, Banking Committee