Mix and match COVID-19 booster shots could be available by the weekend after a critical federal committee unanimously voted to allow them Thursday. Letting Americans choose among the Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines as a COVID-19 booster shot would increase protection against the disease that is killing on average 1,093 Americans a day, the committee said. It also voted to recommend a second shot for all 15 millions Americans who received the one dose J&J vaccine, as well as a booster dose for certain groups of people who got the Moderna vaccine. The vote by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices is the second-to-last step in the booster-authorization process. Once CDC director Dr. Rochelle Walensky signs off on the recommendation, which is expected to happen quickly, Moderna and J&J boosters can begin to be offered in the United States. A booster dose is not required for a person to be considered fully immunized. People who got two doses of either Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna, or one dose of J&J, are fully immunized. All booster doses will be free, just as all COVID-19 vaccines are. #covid #covid19 #coronavirus #breakingnews #cdc