The CEO of Pfizer has said people might need a booster dose of COVID-19 vaccine within 12 months of getting fully vaccinated as well as an annual revaccination for protection against variants of the coronavirus.

Those comments from CEO Albert Bourla were made during an event April 1 and made public Thursday, according to CNBC.

CNBC also reported that Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel said his company is producing a booster that will be available in the fall.

In February, Pfizer announced the beginning of a study of the safety and immunogenicity of a third dose of its vaccine to understand the effect of a booster on immunity against COVID-19 caused by the newly emerging COVID variants.

The Pennsylvania Department of Health said it has not received any information from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention about the possible need for booster injections, but it is monitoring information as it becomes available. The Butler Health System declined to comment Friday.

The news about possible booster shots comes as the number of people getting vaccinated in the state is exceeding 100,000 per day.

The department reported that 2,637,654 people are fully vaccinated and the seven-day average of people getting vaccinated per day is 103,600. A total of 6,885,169 doses have been administered including 4,514,929 first and single doses and 2,370,240 second doses.

Locally, 17,474 people in the county are partially vaccinated and 54,694 are fully vaccinated.

BHS said all residents ages 16 and older can now sign up for vaccinations, and should do so because the coronavirus continues to spread in the community. Appointments can be scheduled at www.butlerhealthsystem.org.

Also Friday, the department reported 34 new cases in the county, increasing the total to 10,256, and 5,650 new cases across the state increased the statewide total to 1,098,502 since the beginning of the pandemic.

No new deaths occurred in the county, but 56 new deaths in the state raised the statewide total to 25,622.

Butler Memorial Hospital is treating 15 confirmed COVID patients and one suspected COVID patient; one of them is in the intensive care unit.

Statewide, 2,577 people are hospitalized including 572 in intensive care. The 14-day average number of people hospitalized per day is about 3,700 lower than it was at the peak in December 2020 and below what it was at the height of the spring peak in May 2020, but it is increasing, the department said.

About 27,149 of the cases in the state are among health care workers. In licensed nursing and personal care homes, 70,063 residents and 14,565 employees have COVID. Of the deaths in the state, 13,026 have been residents of nursing or personal care facilities.