Following the directive of Ministry of Health on the basic and repeated doses of Covid-19 vaccine (the third dose), the provincial health authority counseled Provincial People's Committee to plan injections for high-risk groups, the frontline forces. It is expected that in December the province would give the third injection of Covid-19 vaccine.
The third jab is allowed
Deputy Minister of Health Tran Van Thuan said that in order to strengthen immunity and prevent Covid-19 disease for those who have been vaccinated with the full basic dose (two jabs), the Ministry of Health has issued permission for localities to give the third dose of Covid-19 vaccine from December. This proposal is based on the recommendations of the World Health Organization (WHO)'s strategic advisory group on immunization and the experience of using vaccines in other countries.
The vaccine used for additional and booster injections is the vaccine approved by the Ministry of Health, the dose is based on the manufacturer's instructions, and is permitted by the Ministry of Health. Localities need to decide on injection groups in accordance with the actual situation, develop plans and prepare necessary conditions to deploy additional and repeated injections from December based on the progress of vaccine supply. However, the Ministry also asked localities to continue speeding up the vaccination schedule for people aged 18 and over, prioritizing the full basic dose for people aged 50 and over.
As emphasizing the injection of the third jab (supplementary and booster), Deputy Minister of Health Tran Van Thuan said that the additional dose is the dose given at least 28 days after the last dose of the two basic doses. A booster dose, also called a repeated one, is given at least 6 months after the last dose of the basic or supplemental dose. Specifically, the additional dose is given to people aged 18 years or older, with priority given to people aged 50 years and older who have received the full basic dose, moderate and severe immunodeficiency, such as organ transplant recipients, cancer patients, HIV patients, and people undergoing treatment on immunosuppressive drugs or have been on treatment within six months... This group received the same vaccine with the same basic dose or mixed with mRNA technology vaccines (such as Pfizer, Moderna), depending on the supply.
The booster dose is for people aged 18 years or older who have had enough basic or supplementary doses, priority is given to people with underlying medical conditions, people who need long-term care at medical facilities, people aged 50 years and older, people who directly test, care for and treat Covid-19 patients, medical staff. The Ministry allows mixing of vaccines with mRNA technology when injecting booster doses. Particularly in the case of basic or additional dose of Sinopharm vaccine, a booster dose of the same type or mRNA vaccine or viral vector technology vaccine (AstraZeneca vaccine) can be administered.
Deputy Minister Tran Van Thuan said, the Ministry of Health has received and injected more than 120 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines to people over 18 years old, of which more than 94% have received at least one dose and nearly 68% of people had injected two doses. Some provinces and cities gave enough two jabs to about 80-90% of people over 18 years old, such as Ho Chi Minh City, Binh Duong...
The vaccination would be implemented in December
Along with the proposal of the third dose, the Ministry of Health asked People's Committees of provinces and cities to direct relevant units to check and make statistics on the number of children in the area of age groups: 3 - 11 years old, 12 - 15 years old, 16 - 17 years old, and suggest the need for vaccines for these age groups. Localities need to develop a plan to use vaccines in 2022 for children aged 3 years and older and adults.
Regarding the third dose vaccination, Dr. Nguyen Hong Chuong, Director of Provincial Department of Health, said that the department developed a plan to submit to the Provincial People's Committee for third dose vaccination against Covid-19 for high-risk groups, frontline forces in disease prevention and control. It is expected that the province would implement it in December. As for the injection of first and second doses of vaccines for children from 3 to 11 years old, the health branch checked the list, prepared a plan and will carry out it as soon as there is a guiding document from the Ministry of Health. Also according to Dr. Nguyen Hong Chuong, the basic injection is very important in the prevention and control of the Covid-19, hence it should be given maximum priority. However, due to the complicated and unpredictable development of Covid-19, it is also necessary to strengthen the immune system to prevent the disease for those who have received the full basic dose.
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Lan Hieu, Director of Hanoi Medical University Hospital, said that vaccination of three doses of Covid-19 vaccine is a measure to strengthen the immune response of vaccination. Research documents show that it has not been determined how long the residue of antibodies after vaccination against Covid-19 lasts. Therefore, the booster injection is to increase the effectiveness of the vaccine, contributing to limiting infection in the community, reducing the rate of severe disease and death.
Reported by Hoang Linh - Translated by Ngoc Huynh
