Health asks to accelerate with the third dose before Christmas and assumes that it will be extended to more ages
The administration of the booster doses is not flowing with the speed that the Ministry of Health expected. Minister Carolina Darias has admitted that the percentages of those vaccinated with the booster they are "low", both in those over 70 years - of whom have received the third injection just over 50% - and people who received the single dose of Janssen. In the latter case, the proportion is particularly small: it does not reach 15%.
The COVID-19 vaccine reduces the risk of dying by 25 times in the elderly
Know more
"We must increase the percentage because we know about the vulnerability due to age, we cannot stop. Vaccine yes, and reinforcement also, the sooner the better," said Darias, who has asked the regional councilors to step on the accelerator with the aim of that the 16 million people for whom the booster dose is already approved have it in place before the end of the year. "And if possible before the Christmas holidays, which involve many social interactions," the minister warned at the press conference after the Interterritorial Health Council.
The Public Health Commission has just approved the extra vaccine for those over 60 years of age and the presentation that advises the Ministry on the vaccination strategy continues to review the incorporation of "new groups", according to the minister, who has accepted the new position of the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDE) after verifying a progressive loss of immunity with the passage of months from the administration of the second dose.
The EU body recommends booster doses for the entire adult population, with special attention to people over 40 years of age, six months after the second injection. In the same line, The FDA cleared the booster widely in the United States last Friday.
