WHO Recommends Booster Shots For Immunocompromised - Forbes

Topline

The World Health Organization recommended Monday that people who are immunocompromised receive a booster shot of a Covid-19 vaccine, according to multiple news sites, despite the agency holding off for months on recommending booster shots to give poorer nations the opportunity to increase vaccination rates.

Key Facts

The WHO’s Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization made the recommendation after reviewing the latest vaccine data, which found that those with weak immune systems do not “respond adequately” to the standard two-shot Covid-19 vaccine and are “at high risk” of getting severe Covid-19 symptoms, according to Agence France-Presse.

WHO Department of Immunization Director Kate O’Brien also said they found evidence that the immunocompromised group “highly disproportionately” represents breakthrough infections, Reuters reported. 

The booster shot would be recommended as part of the full vaccine schedule for those who are immunocompromised.

Key Background

Last month, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus called for a moratorium on distributing booster shots worldwide until 2022, though he did say that research supported those who were immunocompromised getting a third shot of a Covid-19 vaccine. He argued that the current Covid-19 vaccines are sufficient to protect people against the virus and more focus should be put on helping nations gain access to initial doses of the vaccines. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention approved distributing Covid-19 booster shots to people who are immunocompromised in August and for seniors over the age of 65 and those with underlying health conditions in September.

Big Number

7.79 million. That is how many people have received a booster shot in the U.S. since August 13, when the CDC initially approved boosters for immunocompromised people, according to the agency’s tracker.

Tangent

The panel also recommended that those over the age of 60 who received the two-dose Chinese Sinovac and Sinopharm Covid-19 vaccines also get a third shot of the same vaccine or a different vaccine, after trials in South America found that the vaccines’ effectiveness waned over time.

Further Reading

WHO Calls For Pause On Covid Booster Shots Until 2022 (Forbes)

CDC Committee Approves Third Covid-19 Shot For Immunocompromised People—Here’s Who Should Get One (Forbes)

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WHO Recommends Booster Shots For Immunocompromised - Forbes
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