The CSS still leaves the door ajar for travel abroad.
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LPeople who have been infected with the coronavirus must still receive two injections of the mRNA vaccine to be considered fully protected and vaccinated. This is what the Superior Health Council recommends in a new opinion published on Wednesday. However, the CSS is making a concession under the European COVID-19 certificate. There, the administration of a single dose could be considered to be a complete vaccination.
French health authorities decided in mid-February to administer a single dose of the mRNA vaccine to people who have already contracted COVID-19. The French High Authority of Health (HAS) used the argument that people cured of COVID-19 had developed immune memory during their infection. A single dose of the vaccine would then suffice as a booster. A week later, Belgium also looked into the matter, but decided to stick with the two-dose strategy. In a new updated recommendation, the Belgian Health Council is sticking to this recommendation.
According to the most recent studies, natural immunity to COVID-19 lasts for at least six months. An infection with the original Wuhan variant also offers partial protection against the so-called worrying variants (British, South African, Brazilian and Indian variants). In addition, most studies show that the antibody level after a single injection in people who have been previously infected is significantly higher than that obtained after two doses in patients who have never been infected with COVID.
However, as the data available is limited and has not been collected from the most vulnerable groups, the CSS maintains its initial position of maintaining a comprehensive vaccination schedule for the entire population.
CSS leaves the door ajar for those who wish to travel. For travel, a single dose after infection might be enough to be considered fully vaccinated. “In this particular context of travel and COVID-19 certificate, this can be considered a full vaccination,” the document said.
Finally, the CSS underlined that it was up to the Vaccination Task Force and the political authorities to take the final decisions.
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