Despite efforts by the World Health Organization (WHO) for boosters of the COVID-19 vaccine to stop until at least the end of September. Some rich countries are already preparing booster doses for citizens.
What countries are they?
Germany, France and Israel will go ahead with their plans to inject boosters of the COVID-19 vaccine. This, regardless of the organization’s call to wait until more people can be immunized around the world.
“The global gap in the supply of the COVID-19 vaccine is hugely uneven. Some countries and regions are asking for millions of booster doses. Before other countries have had supplies to vaccinate their health workers and the most vulnerable ”. –Said the Director General of the Organization, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Gebreyesus.
Third dose is also happening in Latin America
To date, three countries in the region have started or announced that they will start campaigns to administer a third dose in the near future. And some, like Uruguay, even a fourth.
Others, such as Argentina, have announced that they are evaluating the possibility, although they do not plan to do so before the end of the year.
In most cases, These are nations that used some of the doses produced in China. Whose efficacy in reducing infections and symptomatic disease has been questioned by health authorities and recent studies.
These Latin American countries are going to administer a third dose
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic was the first country in the region to begin a campaign in early July to vaccinate risk groups in its population with a third dose.
chili
Chile, which has one of the highest vaccination rates on the continent, was the second country in the region to initiate a vaccination campaign to inoculate a third dose.
As of this Wednesday, Chileans who received the complete cycle of the Chinese Sinovac vaccine are eligible to receive a booster dose, although the calendar will be organized by age and by the date of the second dose, as announced by Health authorities.
Uruguay
At the end of July, Uruguay, another of the countries with the highest vaccination rate in the region, also announced that it will administer a third dose as of August 16.
WHO: Global Vaccine Supply and Global and National Equity
According to the latest WHO report, national vaccination program policy decisions to add a booster dose must take into account the strength of the evidence regarding the need for these doses and the global availability of vaccines.
Giving booster doses to a large proportion of the population when many have not yet received even a first dose undermines the principle of national and global equity.
Prioritizing booster doses over speed and breadth in initial dose coverage can also hurt the prospects for global pandemic mitigation, with serious implications for the health, social and economic well-being of people around the world. .
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