UK government advisers advised against giving a fourth dose of the COVID-19 vaccine to nursing home residents over the age of 80 because data shows that the third offers lasting protection against hospital admissions.
For people over 65, protection against hospitalization remains at about 90% three months after receiving the third injection, according to data compiled by the country’s Health Security Agency.
For this reason, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunization advised the government on Friday that at the moment it was not necessary to offer one more dose, which would be the second booster, to the vulnerable population. Instead, the executive should focus on giving the third dose to as many people as possible to increase protection against the omicron variant of the coronavirus, which has a higher infection rate.
“Current data shows that the booster dose continues to provide high levels of protection against severe cases of the disease, even in the most vulnerable age groups,” said Professor Wei Shen Lim, chairman of the committee. “For this reason, the committee has concluded that there is no immediate need to introduce a second booster dose, although this will continue to be reviewed.”
The number of patients hospitalized in the country due to COVID-19 rose to 18,454 on Thursday, more than double the number two weeks earlier.
Rising hospital staff casualties have forced the army to assist beleaguered doctors and nurses.
In England, more than 39,000 hospital workers were on leave for coronavirus-related reasons on January 2, 59% more than in the previous week, according to health authorities in the region.
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