Tag: booster

Repeated Covid boosters not a viable strategy: WHO

by Nina LARSON GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — WHO experts warned Tuesday that repeating booster doses of the original Covid vaccines is not a viable strategy against emerging variants and called for new jabs that better protect against transmission. An expert group created by the World Health Organization to assess the performance of Covid-19 vaccines said simply providing fresh jabs of existing Covid vaccines as new strains of the virus emerge was not the best way […]

PHL okays shortened interval of 3 months for booster shots

From the previous interval of 6 months, boosters can now be administered 3 months after second primary vaccine dose (Eagle News) — Effective December 22, the interval for the administration of booster doses shall be shortened — from at least six months to at least three months after the full or second dose of the primary vaccine, according to the Department of Health. Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said the shortened interval between the second […]

Biden says US ‘prepared’ for Omicron as Israel calls for 4th shots

by Issam Ahmed with AFP bureaus President Joe Biden on Tuesday told Americans worried about the rapidly spreading Omicron coronavirus variant that the country was “prepared” to fight it, as Israel — which pioneered the use of Covid vaccine boosters — announced fourth shots for those over 60 and health workers. Omicron, now present in dozens of countries, appears to be more infectious than earlier coronavirus strains, despite early indications that it does not cause […]

Starting Friday, Dec. 3, fully vaccinated adults could get booster shots — DOH

  (Eagle News) – Starting Friday, December 3, all fully vaccinated adults are eligible to receive COVID-19 booster shots, according to the Department of Health. In its advisory issued on Thursday, December 2, the DOH said that Filipinos 18 years old and above who received their primary COVID-19 vaccines can be given either homologous or heterologous boosters. Those who got Sinovac could be given a homologous Sinovac booster, or another vaccine brand –- AstraZeneca, Pfizer […]

Russia’s Putin gets Covid booster jab

MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Sunday he had had a third dose of a Covid vaccine, as the country struggles with a fresh wave of the virus. “I had it two hours ago,” Putin said on state television channel Rossiya 24, assuring viewers that his booster injection of the Sputnik vaccine had been painless. The authorities are struggling to convince people to get vaccinated against Covid, even as a fresh […]

US authorizes Covid boosters for all adults, recommends for over-50s

    by Issam AHMED Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States authorized the Pfizer and Moderna Covid vaccine boosters for all people aged 18 and older on Friday, as the world’s hardest-hit country enters a new winter wave of the pandemic. Boosters were previously available to the immune compromised, people over 65, those at high risk of severe disease, and people in high risk occupations. The new decision “helps to […]

PHL starts giving booster shots to health workers; DOH issues recommended booster dose combinations

  (Eagle News) – The Philippine government started on Wednesday, Nov. 17, giving booster shots to the country’s health workers, giving them the choice to pick their preferred COVID-19 vaccine brand. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued an emergency use authorization for four vaccine brands as homologous boosters – Sinovac, AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Moderna. This means these brands can be given as a third dose, for those who have received the same brand as first […]

Side effects after booster dose similar to shot two: US study

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) –Most side effects after a third dose of a Covid vaccine are mild or moderate, and occur at about as often as after shot two, a US study showed Tuesday in a finding that was expected but nonetheless reassuring. The report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) came from more than 22,000 people who signed up to a vaccine safety smartphone app and who received a booster shot […]

US panel recommends Covid boosters for people 65 and older

  by Issam AHMED Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — A panel of leading US medical experts advising the government voted in favor of authorizing boosters of Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine for everyone aged 65 and up, as well as people at high risk of developing severe Covid. The same committee however rejected an initial proposal, submitted by Pfizer and backed by President Joe Biden’s administration, to fully approve boosters to everyone aged 16 […]

PHL starts talks with vaccine manufacturers for booster shots, to sign “term sheet” soon to ensure supplies

Booster shots to be allocated initially for A1 sector or the health frontliners, says Galvez   (Eagle News) – The Philippines is preparing to buy additional vaccines as booster shots as the highly infectious Delta variant is declared as the dominant COVID-19 variant driving infections in the country. National Task Force Chief Implementer and vaccine czar Secretary Carlito G. Galvez, Jr., said the NTF has started to negotiate with four different manufacturers that produce COVID-19 […]

Israel to begin Covid booster shots for over 40s

JERUSALEM, Undefined (AFP) — Israelis aged 40 and over will be able to receive coronavirus vaccine booster shots starting this weekend, Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz said Thursday, as the country battles a spike in infections. Israel was one of the first countries to launch a vaccination drive in mid-December via an agreement with Pfizer to obtain millions of paid vaccine doses in exchange for sharing data on their effectiveness. The inoculation campaign was hailed as […]

WHO slams wealthy nations’ rush towards Covid vaccine boosters

  GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — The World Health Organization condemned Wednesday the rush by wealthy countries to provide Covid vaccine booster shots, while millions around the world have yet to receive a single dose. Speaking before US authorities announced that all vaccinated Americans would soon be eligible to receive additional doses, WHO experts insisted there was not enough scientific evidence that boosters were needed. Providing them while so many were still waiting to be immunised […]