Coronavirus: Israel approves fourth vaccine for immunocompromised

The Israel will proceed with the second booster dose coronavirus vaccine for people with weakened immune systems, said today (30/12) the chief government health official, but a final decision on a wider use is still pending.

Israeli hospital granted fourth installments in a hygienic test groupon Monday, in what he called the first large-scale study on whether a second round of boosting doses will help address the Omicron variant. The results are expected in two weeks.

Israel was the fastest country to carry out initial vaccinations a year ago and became one of the first countries to launch a booster program after noticing that immunity weakened over time.

Recommendation of experts to give the 4th dose to both health and people over 60 years

Concerned about the rapid spread of Omicron, a panel of health ministry experts last week recommended that Israel offer a fourth dose of the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine to health care providers and people over the age of 60 or those with weakened immune systems.

However, the director general of the Ministry of Health, Nahman As, whose approval is necessary to launch a new campaign of supportive doses, did not immediately announce a decision, as some experts argued that there was insufficient scientific evidence to justify the administration of a fourth dose.

During a press conference today, As said he had decided that a second booster dose would only be offered to immunocompromised people for the time being and that he would continue to consider whether to increase eligibility for the booster dose.

“In the face of knowledge gaps worldwide in the current situation, we are acting with caution and responsibility,” he said.

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