Necessity of Covid-19 booster doses

The rapidly mutating Omicron variant of the coronavirus is a grim reminder of the fact that the pandemic is very much present and is not likely to end within a short period of time. Indeed, Pfizer Inc has forecast that the Covid-19 pandemic would not be behind us until 2024. With the Omicron variant driving a new surge of cases, including a rising number of cases for even fully vaccinated people in different parts of the globe, attention has turned to the need for a third Covid-19 vaccine dose. According to BBC, researchers in the UK have analysed the likely impact that a Covid-19 booster shot will have on Omicron and say it could provide around 85 per cent protection against severe illness. While there has been a dramatic decline in the number of Covid-19 infections and very few fatalities in Bangladesh in the recent days, it will hardly be wise to let complacency creep in. So, it comes as a welcome news that the trial of Covid-19 booster doses will begin today, according to a report published in this newspaper on Saturday. The Health Minister Zahid Malik has said that first-line health workers, government officials, media personnel, and the elderly will be administered the booster doses. National Technical Advisory Committee (NTAC) on Covid-19 recommended booster shots to the citizens above 60 and frontliners. The senior citizens and frontliners who got the two doses of vaccine six months ago will get the booster dose.

Experts say that while the current vaccines have so far proven quite effective against Covid-19, the protection they offer may recede after a while. A booster shot, will be needed to maximize vaccine-induced protection and prolong its durability. Israel is the first country in the world to make boosters available to all. Although over 65 million people in the United States are unvaccinated, on October 21, a booster shot was approved for all over 65 years and certain categories of young adults. It was later expanded to include all adults. Many countries in Europe too have approved booster shots, having based their decision on vaccine effectiveness data. The effectiveness of different types of vaccines against the Omicron variant is not clear. However, this variant appears to be far more transmissible than the Delta variant, that ravaged the world not too long ago. It should be mentioned though, disease severity and the age groups most vulnerable to disease are not fully known. Despite these uncertainties we believe that, it might still be prudent to approve booster doses at least for people older than 60 years and young adults who are immunocompromised or have comorbidities.

Initially health authorities in developed countries were rather wary about the idea of boosters for all. Now, hoping to stay ahead of the Omicron threat, public-health officials across North America and Europe are urging all adults to get a top-up dose of vaccine. It is interesting to note that variant-specific boosters are also in the works. Experts are urging people not to wait: booster shots could help ward off a surge of Omicron infections.

The grim reality is that over 5.34 million people in the world have died from Covid-19 since the beginning of the pandemic. However, there is light at the end of the tunnel. We are beginning to see the lifesaving effect of vaccines. Studies reveal that vaccine effectiveness against Corona infection appears to decline with the passage of time since vaccination, it is reassuring that vaccines continue to perform well against severe disease and death. However, continued follow-up is essential to determine whether the effectiveness against severe disease and death will decline substantially in the future.

The need for a third dose cannot be denied but the priority, we believe, should be on increasing vaccine coverage. Administering booster doses cannot be at the cost of increased coverage of the first dose and full vaccination. More is still to be gained by focusing on vaccinating the unvaccinated.