Moderna Inc said on Wednesday it had applied with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for authorization of its COVID-19 booster vaccine for all adults aged 18 and older.

The FDA has cleared booster shots of COVID-19 vaccines for people who are immunocompromised, those aged 65 and older and for individuals at high risk of severe disease or who are regularly exposed to the virus.

Pfizer Inc last week applied for a similar clearance for the booster doses of the vaccine it has developed with German partner BioNTech.

A U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advisory panel will meet on Friday to discuss expanding the eligibility for booster doses of the Pfizer vaccine.

(Reporting by Manas Mishra in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)